I recently had a conversation with somebody who was stressing out about decision-making and God’s will. By God’s grace, I dropped the following truth bombs from personal experience:
– God is more concerned about character development than which fork you take at this particular juncture.
– Most of the lessons that God wants to teach you, most of the changes he wants to make in your heart, He will accomplish no matter what paths you take. He is capable of creating the changes of mindset and character that he has appointed for you, regardless of the exact circumstances.
– Prayer can become worry. The intent sometimes kills the results. Jesus told the Pharisees that they were straining out gnats and swallowing a camel. I have done this by being hyper-religious about certain details of my life, while major emotional blindspots slipped by. What is your prayer really producing? Have you lost peace while seeking perfection? If so, you have fallen into a state that is worse than the one you feared in the first place.
– Paul told the Corinthian church that Godly grief produces repentance, and worldly grief produces death. So, be honest with yourself, what is your prayer producing?
On related notes, see
Pilgrimage and Horizons of Self
Perceptions of God’s Perfection
Andrew K. Banks 