Have you ever wanted something so bad that you were willing to do anything to get it? You sought help from others to get it. You prayed about it. You fasted about it. When that didn’t work you whined about it. Then you complained about not having it. You get the picture – you were willing to do whatever it took to get what you wanted.
Many of us are going through life like that – we want what we want and are willing to do whatever it takes to get it. But what if what you want is not what God wants for you?
The Bible says God will give you the desires of your heart(Psalms 37:4), so sometimes that’s even the things He would rather you not have.
You see there are these fraternal twins called Perfect Will and Permissive Will.
Perfect Will is perfect. He is the perfect image of everything you could possibly desire. He is wonderful. He can be a little hard sometimes but once you
get over the hardness it is pure ecstasy. He displays the qualities of God at all times. He is full of compassion and lines up with the will of God always. It’s not always easy with Perfect Will but you are guaranteed to land where you were created to land. Perfect Will always walk according to the Bible and can back up what he talks about.
Permissive Will has it good points. He can be fun and alluring. Usually the life of the party and willing to change things to make sure you are having fun while in his presence. He can be very fickle and sometimes even temperamental. He has been known to be mild mannered and bull headed at the same time. Permissive Will can mirror God but don’t always have the character of God. Permissive Will can be tainted with the views of the world. He may show you to your destination but you may be too tired to enjoy it once you arrive.
Okay, I may have given some humor to it but hopefully you can see where I’m going with this. God gives us a perfect will but he also allows for a permissive will. You have a choice. You can do things the way He instructs you or you can do things the way you want to do them. He will not force you to follow His way but He will make it worth your effort to do so.
In Genesis 32:26, Jacob had toiled with the angel of God all night. He was desperate to get an answer from him. Are you willing to toil with God all night or until He blesses you? What if he told you what you wanted was not what he desires for you? What if he tells you to let go of some things you hold dear? What if he wants you to move to a place you have no desire to be in or move away from a place you are comfortable in? What if His perfect will for your life don’t look like what you thought it would look like?
God never told you it would be fair but he did tell you it would be worth it. He never said it would be easy but He promised to never leave you. He never said weapons would not form against you but he did say they would not prosper.
You have a choice you can follow the perfect will of God or you can follow the permissive will. You can receive the blessings of God the way He intended for you to receive them or you can received the watered down version because you aren’t ready for the real thing.
I’m holding on to the spirit of God until He blesses me with all His promises. I don’t have all the answers. I won’t do everything right. But thank God He is a God that offers grace and mercy to us all.
What will you follow today? Will you follow the perfect will of God or the permissive will of God? You may eventually get to the same place but will you be able to truly enjoy the blessings God has for you along the way.
Until Next Time,
