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Strauss, Ph.D. \line Biblical Studies Press \line{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\cf2\ul www.bible.org\~}}}\cf1\ulnone\f0\fs24 \line 1997\par Contents\par \pard\li200\tqr\tldot\tx9360\fs20 The Time Is Now\par \pard\tqr\tldot\tx9360 PART ONE:\~ GOD\rquote S PERFECT PLAN\par \pard\li200\tqr\tldot\tx9360 Chapter 1:\~ The Game Plan\par Chapter 2:\~ All Your Ways\par Chapter 3:\~ He Will Be Our Guide\par Chapter 4:\~ One Step at a Time\par \pard\tqr\tldot\tx9360\~\par PART TWO:\~ YOUR PERSONAL PREPARATION\par \pard\li200\tqr\tldot\tx9360 Chapter 5:\~ Knowing the Shepherd\par Chapter 6:\~ Not My Will\par Chapter 7:\~ The Renewed Mind\par \pard\tqr\tldot\tx9360\~\par PART THREE:\~ GOD\rquote S PRIMARY PROVISION\par \pard\li200\tqr\tldot\tx9360 Chapter 8:\~ Equipped for the Journey\par Chapter 9:\~ This is the Will of God\par Chapter 10:\~ Charting the Course\par Chapter 11:\~ But I Felt Led\par \pard\tqr\tldot\tx9360\~\par PART FOUR:\~ OTHER PRACTICAL PRINCIPLES\par \pard\li200\tqr\tldot\tx9360 Chapter 12:\~ Ask God\par Chapter 13:\~ Flashing Lights and Clanging Bells\par Chapter 14:\~ Use Your Head\par Chapter 15:\~ Peace Like a River\par Chapter 16:\~ Right Where You Are\par \pard\fi720\sb60\sa60\qj\~\par \pard\keepn\s2\sb180\sa60\qc\cf0\b\f1\fs24 The Time Is Now \cf3\f0\par \pard\fi720\sb60\sa60\qj\cf1\b0\fs20 Every child of God faces decisions. Rarely do we get through an entire day without being confronted with maLVALny different choices\emdash most of them minor, some of them major. Is there any guarantee that we can consistently do the right thing?\par Not many people get interested in the subject of divine guidance until they face a decision of supreme importance. By then it may be too late. We prepare ourselves to handle the big decisions of life by dealing properly with the small ones. So the way to prepare for the major crossroads of the future is to begin learning in the present. The time to think about this subject is now.\par And God has help available. His Word is filled with prac\-tical suggestions for making proper choices. This book is an attempt to bring that information together for your encour\-agement and assistance. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, \ldblquote This is the way, walk ye in it\rdblquote (\cf4\ul Isa_30:21\cf1\ulnone ).\par \pard\sb100\sa100 This book was originally published in 1979 by Tyndale House under the title, \i Decisions! Decisions! How God Shows the Way\i0 . It has been scanned and is used by permission.\par Richard L. Strauss, was a 1954 graduate of Wheaton College, and received his Th.M. (1958) and Th.D. (1962) degrees from Dallas Theological Seminary. Richard authored nine books, and served as pastor of churches in Fort Worth, TX, Huntsville, AL. He was pastor of Emmanuel Faith Community Church in Escondido, CA from 1972 to 1993 when the Lord called him home. \par \f1\~\par \pard\sb100\sa100\qc\b\scaps\f0 Trademark and Copyright Information\b0\scaps0\par \pard\sb100\sa100\scaps Copyright \'a9 1997 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. and the authors. All rights reserved. For free usage information, please read the BSF Website Copyright Statement for fair use statements. \scaps0\par \scaps Electronic Access to this Material\scaps0\par \pard\sb100\sa100\qc\scaps This Material is available for use on the internet via an agreement with the Biblical Studies Foundation, a non-Profit Foundation at:\line\cf0{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf2rLVAL www.bible.org}}}\cf1\scaps0\f0\fs20\par \pard\sb100\sa100\scaps Biblical Studies copyrighted by individual authors and the Biblical studies Press are not shareware or public domain and may not be duplicated without permission.\scaps0\par \pard\sb100\sa100\qc\b\scaps BSF Website Copyright Statement\b0\scaps0\par \pard\sb100\sa100\scaps From our website at \cf0{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf2 www.bible.org}}}\cf1\f0\fs20 , you may download the information and print it for yourself and others as long as you give it away and do not charge for it. In this case, free means free. It cannot be bundled with anything sold, nor can you charge for shipping, handling, or anything. It is provided for personal study or for use in preparation of sermons, Sunday school classes, or other non-commercial study. This release does not apply to other media than paper printed distribution. \scaps0\par \scaps For Free distribution of more than 100 copies, you must obtain written permission and comply with reasonable guidelines of content control and include currently valid BSP copyright and organizational acknowledgments. \scaps0\par \scaps For permission, inquire by E-Mail to \ldblquote head@bible.org\rdblquote or call 800/575-2425.\scaps0\par \pard\sb60\sa60\f2\fs22\par \pard Formatted for e-Sword by David Cox\par Copyright \'a92008 Biblical Studies Press, reprinted with permission from \cf0{\field{\*\fldinst{HYPERLINK "www.bible.org"}}{\fldrslt{\ul\cf2 www.bible.org}}}\cf1\f2\fs22 for free redistribution.\lang3082\kerning28\f3\par \lang1033\par } % `4  0 g  U 02 All Your Ways"2&03 He Will Be Our Guide "@404 One Step at a Time"<005 Knowing the Shepherd "@4 06 Not My Will"." 07 The Renewed Mind"8, 08 Equipped for the Journeyzw"H< 09 This is the Will of Godvl"F: 10 Charting the Course8a">211 But I Felt LedԍX"4(12 Ask GodN"(13 Flashing Lights and Clanging BellsZB\P14 Use Your Head62&15 Peace Like a River+<016 Right Where You Areȵ>201 The Game Plan|2&00 How to really know the will of GodJ,\PLVAL{\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f1\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}{\f2\fnil\fcharset0 Georgia;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;\red0\green128\blue0;\red51\green102\blue102;\red0\green0\blue255;} {\stylesheet{ Normal;}{\s1 heading 1;}{\s2 heading 2;}{\s3 heading 3;}} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\keepn\s1\sb240\sa60\qc\lang1033\kerning28\b\f0\fs28 PART ONE: GOD\rquote S PERFECT PLAN\line\pard\keepn\s2\sb180\sa60\qc\cf1\kerning0\fs24 Chapter 1: The Game Plan\cf0\par \pard\sb60\sa60\cf1\b0\f1\fs20 The management experts tell us we need to plan our lives. \ldblquote Set goals for yourself,\rdblquote they say. \ldblquote Decide where you want to be and what you want to be doing one year from now, five years from now, ten years from now. Map out a plan for getting there from where you are, and begin to follow that plan faithfully.\rdblquote\par They even suggest that our plan should reach right down to our daily schedules, that the things we do today should be contributing toward the fulfillment of our ultimate goals. Each day, they say, we should make a list of the things we want to accomplish in order of their priority, then work our way through the list. \ldblquote Plan your work and work your plan\rdblquote is the catchy little phrase they use to encourage us. And the solemn warning is sure to follow: \ldblquote To fail to plan is to plan to fail.\rdblquote\par Most of us want to be successful in what we do. We enjoy the respect that goes with success and the sense of satisfac\-tion that accompanies accomplishment. So we may listen to the experts, lay out a plan for our lives, follow that plan precisely, and still fail. Why? Because for the child of God there is another factor to consider: God also has a plan for our lives.\par The truest kind of success from God\rquote s perspective can be attained only when we follow his plan rather than our own.\par We may reach every goal we ever set for ourselves, and we may eLVALarn the admiration of all our friends and the respect of all our associates, and still feel a sickening emptiness inside if we have ignored God\rquote s plan.\par You see, God saved us to know and to do his will. In a message to a recent convert named Saul of Tarsus, Ananias declared, \ldblquote The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. You will be his witness to all men of what you have seen and heard.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Act_22:14\cf1\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Act_22:15\cf1\ulnone (NIV)\lang1033 Paul was chosen by God to come into an understanding of his will and to carry it out. He lived his whole life with awareness that God had a plan for him to follow.\par That awareness made an immeasurable difference. Some twenty-five years after his conversion, in the face of great affliction, Paul confidently affirmed, \ldblquote But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.\rdblquote\cf2\lang3082\ul Act_20:24\cf1\ulnone (KJV)\lang1033 The word \ldblquote course\rdblquote was used of the race course laid out for a runner to follow in the Olympic Games, the plan for the race which was prepared ahead of time by the judges. Paul\rquote s great aspiration was to follow God\rquote s course for his life.\par And he did it. At the end of his life he reflected back over his years as a believer and said, \ldblquote I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course.\rdblquote\cf2\lang3082\ul 1Ti_4:7\cf1\ulnone (KJV)\lang1033 And he used the very same word he had used years earlier. He was writing, this time, from death row in a Roman dungeon. He was soon to be martyred for his faith. Yet his life was a success; he had fullness of joy and a satisfying sense of accomplishment because he had completed the course God had laid out for him. He had done the will of LVALGod.\par Some will say, \ldblquote Wait a minute; that was the great Apostle Paul. Sure, God had a plan for his life, but what\rquote s that got to do with mine?\rdblquote All right, here it is straight. God has a plan for your life, too. Unless you are convinced that he does, you will probably lay your own plans and choose your own way. And someday you may look back and say, \ldblquote Well, here I am, right where I wanted to be. But why do I feel so hollow and unfulfilled?\rdblquote\par So we must firmly establish this basic biblical concept before we go any further: God has a plan for your life.\par \pard\keepn\s3\sb60\sa60\b\f0\fs24 Too Good to be True?\cf3\f1\par \pard\sb60\sa60\cf1\b0\fs20 Nowhere is the principle more lucidly stated than in this pivotal verse: \ldblquote For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared before\-hand, that we should walk in them.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Eph_2:10\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033 There is no doubt about how we got saved. We are God\rquote s workmanship; we were created anew in Christ Jesus by the regenerating work of his Spirit.\lang3082 Cf. \cf2\ul 2Co_5:17\cf1\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Tit_3:5\cf1\lang1033\ulnone He did it all of his own grace. \ldblquote For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of your\-selves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.\rdblquote\cf2\lang3082\ul Eph_2:8-9\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033 But there was one very important reason why God recreated us in Christ Jesus. It was so we might \i do good works\i0 .\par \ldblquote So what?\rdblquote you say. \ldblquote Everyone should do good works, shouldn\rquote t he? Why is that so special?\rdblquote\par The special thing about the good works God wants each of us personally to do, is that they were selected ahead of time by him. They were \ldblquote prepared beforehand,\rdblquote that is, they were planned by God before we were even born. And now our responsibility is to accomplish thoLVALse specific good works which God laid out for us so long ago.\par When a football coach prepares for a big game, he lays out what he calls a game plan, a strategy for that particular con\-test. Before the game begins he knows exactly what he wants his players to do and how he wants them to respond in certain situations. They can choose other strategies, but the coach usually finds that they perform best when they follow the game plan he has prepared beforehand. Just so, there are many plans we can choose for our lives, many different di\-rections we can go. But only one plan will provide the op\-portunities to do all the good things the divine Coach wants us to accomplish.\par Only one road will bring us in touch with all the people he wants us to meet and influence for him. Only one direc\-tion will include all the circumstances he wants to use to mold and enrich our lives. We function best when we stick to his game plan, when we walk the path he has mapped out for us and do the things he has planned for us in advance.\par Some Christians are convinced that they are too small and unimportant for God to be that interested in them. \ldblquote People like the Apostle Paul, yes. But me? Never!\rdblquote Do you not realize what God is saying in this passage? Each one of us is so important to him that he actually charted a course for each life before we were ever born. To think that he cares for us that much is almost too good to be true. And it is not an isolated fact found only in this passage of Scripture. Look at some others.\par David said, \ldblquote You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Every day was recorded in your Book!\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Psa_139:16\cf1\ulnone (TLB)\lang1033 The context assures us that while we were still in our mothers\rquote wombs, God was watching over us, superintending our development.\lang3082 Cf. \cf2\ul Psa_139:13-15\cf1\lang1033\ulnone But more exciting still is that he had already sketched out all ourLVAL days for us. Before we ever saw our first light, he had designed the direction he wanted our lives to take and the events he wanted to fill our days.\par Look at it again in another notable Psalm. \ldblquote The steps of a man are established by the Lord; And He delights in his way.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Psa_37:23\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033 The course which the believer\rquote s life should take is fixed or settled by God. And what joy it brings to God\rquote s heart when we follow the plan he has arranged for us. He delights in our way. Can there be any more doubt in your mind? God has a plan for every believer. He has a plan for you.\par \pard\keepn\s3\sb60\sa60\b\f0\fs24 A Parade of Witnesses\cf3\f1\par \pard\sb60\sa60\cf1\b0\fs20 These simple statements of fact are enough to convince us, but there is still further evidence. God gives us an impressive array of living illustrations to cement this truth in our souls. Every reference in Scripture to a person doing the will of God reaffirms the fact that God actually did have a will for him, a plan for him to follow. There are many such examples in the Bible, as we shall see in the chapters to come. Look at just a few extraordinary ones here.\par The first is Isaiah. While there is no doubt that the Servant of Jehovah in Isaiah\rquote s prophecy refers to the Lord Jesus Christ, Isaiah was probably speaking from his own experi\-ence as well when he said: \ldblquote Listen to me, all of you in far-off lands: The Lord called me before my birth. From within the womb he called me by my name .\~.\~. the Lord who formed me from my mother\rquote s womb to serve him, who commissioned me to restore to him his people Israel, who has given me the strength to perform his task and honored me for doing it!\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Isa_49:1\cf1\ulnone ; \cf2\ul Isa_49:5\cf1\ulnone (TLB)\lang1033\par God brought Isaiah into being in order to fulfill a particu\-lar task. He formed him in his mother\rquote s womb for the pur\-pose of performing a uniqueLVAL and urgent mission, that of calling Israel back to himself. And he assured Isaiah that he would supply him with the needed resources to do the job. God had a plan for Isaiah\rquote s life.\par Another great prophet comes into view. Listen to God\rquote s encouraging word to Jeremiah. \ldblquote Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Jer_1:5\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033 Jer\-emiah balked at first. \ldblquote Alas, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, Because I am a youth.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Jer_1:6\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033\par We sometimes do the same thing when we first learn about God\rquote s plan for us. \ldblquote Who, me, Lord? Certainly you must have the wrong person. I can\rquote t do that.\rdblquote But God is there with the answer. \ldblquote Do not say, \lquote I am a youth,\rquote Because ev\-erywhere I send you, you shall go, And all that I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of them, For I am with you to deliver you .\~.\~. Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms, To pluck up and to break down, To destroy and to overthrow, To build and to plant.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Jer_1:7-10\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033\par Many times Jeremiah must have thought back to the day he first learned about God\rquote s plan for his life. The people to whom he preached taunted him, rejected his message, spread false rumors about him, threw him into prison, and broke his tender heart with their rebelliousness and sin. Jeremiah\rquote s persecutors are seldom mentioned anymore. Few of us remember their names even after reading them in the inspired account. But Jeremiah\rquote s name lives on with honor because he followed God\rquote s plan for his life.\par Let\rquote s go back to the Apostle Paul for a moment. We saw that God saved him to do his will, but there is furtheLVALr evi\-dence that God had laid out the course for his life even before he was born. Here is how he explained it: \ldblquote But when He who had set me apart, even from my mother\rquote s womb, and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Gal_1:15-6\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033\par Before Paul drew his first breath, God had already planned for him to pioneer the proclamation of the gospel to the Gentile world. That sense of divine mission gave him confidence and courage throughout his Christian life and ministry. In five of his epistles he introduced himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God. \lang3082 Cf. 1 Corinthians; 2 Corinthians; Ephesians; Colossians; 2 Timothy.\lang1033 He knew he was doing exactly what God wanted him to do. He was fulfilling God\rquote s plan for his life.\par How can we talk about life plans without mentioning the earthly life of God\rquote s Son? The Father\rquote s plan for Jesus\rquote life was clearly settled from the foundation of the world,\lang3082 Cf. \cf2\ul Rev_13:8\cf1\lang1033\ulnone and the details of the plan fill the volumes of the Old Testament. On one occasion Jesus said, \ldblquote All things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accom\-plished.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Luk_18:31\cf1\ulnone (KJV)\lang1033 They had to be accomplished. They were part of the Father\rquote s plan, and Christ came to do the Father\rquote s will. He confidently declared, \ldblquote For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Joh_6:38\cf1\ulnone (NIV); cf. also \cf2\ul Joh_5:30\cf1\lang1033\ulnone Doing the Father\rquote s will was his greatest joy and delight. It was more important to him than eating.\par Do you remember that episode at Jacob\rquote s well in Sychar? The disciples had just returned from thLVALe city with provi\-sions, and they were urging their tired and hungry Master to eat. \ldblquote I have food to eat that you know nothing about,\rdblquote he said to them. \cf2\lang3082\ul Joh_4:32\cf1\ulnone (NIV)\lang1033 When they questioned him further, he clarified his statement. \ldblquote My food . . . is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Joh_4:34\cf1\ulnone (NIV)\lang1033\par To finish his Father\rquote s work, to follow his Father\rquote s plan, to fulfill his Father\rquote s purposes\emdash that was Christ\rquote s highest goal. The writer to the Hebrews expressed the Savior\rquote s sentiments like this: \ldblquote Then I said, \lquote Here I am\emdash it is written about me in the scroll\emdash I have come to do your will, O God.\rquote\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Heb_10:7\cf1\ulnone (NIV)\lang1033\par But again, we\rquote re talking about prophets and apostles, and above all, about the Son of God himself. Aren\rquote t there any little people to illustrate the point\emdash inconspicuous folks like us?\par How about an obscure, unnamed, unknown beggar who couldn\rquote t even see? If God had a plan for his life, would you feel more like God might be interested enough in you to have a plan for your life? This particular man was born blind, and the religious leaders of his day always blamed such misfor\-tunes on sin. So when Jesus and his disciples saw him, the disciples asked, \ldblquote Rabbi, who sinned, this man, or his par\-ents, that he should be born blind?\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Joh_9:2\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033\par Here is Jesus\rquote answer: \ldblquote It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was in order that the works of God might be displayed in him.\rdblquote \cf2\lang3082\ul Joh_9:3\cf1\ulnone (NASB)\lang1033 God had allowed that man to experience all those years of blindness so that at this precise moment in time he might not only give him his physical sight, but also remove the scalesLVAL of spiritual blindness from his soul and provide an unanswerable testimony to others about the person and power of Jesus Christ. It was part of God\rquote s plan for his life. And after he had experienced the joy of knowing Christ and the freedom of having his sins forgiven, I doubt that he ever regretted those years of blind\-ness.\par \pard\keepn\s3\sb60\sa60\b\f0\fs24 There\rquote s Nobody Just Like You\cf3\f1\par \pard\sb60\sa60\cf1\b0\fs20 If God had a plan for that blind beggar, he certainly has one for you. And I can assure you that his plan is custom made to fit you personally. Nobody else has one just like it. And since it was made for you, it is the very best plan you can possibly follow.\par You see, God never made another human being just like you. You are unique and distinct in all of his creation. And since he made you, he is the only one who knows you per\-fectly and completely. He knows you better than you know yourself. Therefore, he is the only one who can intelligently formulate a plan for your life that will utilize all of your potential to its optimum advantage.\par God knows your abilities and he knows your weaknesses. \ldblquote O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.\rdblquote\lang3082 \cf2\ul Psa_139:1\cf1\ulnone (TLB)\lang1033 He knows that some of the things you think are your strengths may really be limitations, and some of the things you think are liabilities are the very things which he can use with great power. Just as he made you, he also con\-structed a plan that is tailored to your personality and abilities. His plan has to be better than anything you could ever devise. In fact, his plan is perfect. That is exactly what the Apostle Paul calls it: \ldblquote that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.\rdblquote\cf2\lang3082\ul Rom_12:2\cf1\ulnone (KJV)\lang1033 \par He not only knows you; he also knows the future. Most of us want our lives to go well, and we know that the decisions we make will have something to do with that.LVAL We also want things to go well for the ones we dearly love, and we know that our decisions will also affect them. So we lay our plans and make our choices on the basis of what we think will be best for all concerned. But unfortunately we do not always know what will be best because we do not know the future. As Jeremiah put it, \ldblquote O Lord, I know it is not within the power of man to map his life and plan his course.\rdblquote\lang3082 \cf2\ul Jer_10:23\cf1\ulnone (TLB)\lang1033\par We really do not know how things are going to turn out ultimately. But God does. He knows us and he knows all the possible consequences of every alternative we can choose. So it makes no sense to choose any plan but his. That is the only one we know will turn out right.\par If you were traveling through a dense and dangerous jungle and had no knowledge of where you were nor what the next step would hold, you would be foolish to run off from your guide and try to blaze your own trail. He knows the way. He can lead you to safety. It is even more foolish for any of us to try to make our own path through life. Our Divine Guide knows the way. Following his plan will bring success and satisfaction to us and great glory to him.\par \pard\sb60\sa60\qc\kerning28\f2\fs22 --------------\lang3082\kerning0\f1\fs20\par } LVAL {\rtf1\ansi\ansicpg1252\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\froman\fprq2\fcharset0 Times New Roman;}{\f1\fswiss\fprq2\fcharset0 Arial;}} {\colortbl ;\red0\green0\blue0;\red51\green102\blue102;\red0\green128\blue0;\red0\green0\blue255;} {\stylesheet{ Normal;}{\s1 heading 1;}{\s2 heading 2;}{\s3 heading 3;}} {\*\generator Riched20 5.40.11.2210;}\viewkind4\uc1\pard\keepn\s2\sb180\sa60\qc\cf1\lang1033\b\f0\fs24 Chapter 16: Right Where You Are\cf2\f1\par \pard\sb60\sa60\cf1\b0\fs20 Maybe you\rquote re thinking, \ldblquote If only I had learned this years ago, my life could have been different. But I\rquote ve wasted it now, and it\rquote s too late to change direction.\rdblquote I\rquote ve heard that from folks who believe they\rquote ve married the wrong person, or who failed to go to college when they had the opportunity, or who now think they\rquote ve been pursuing the wrong career all these years, or who closed their spiritual ears once long ago when God called them into some form of Christian service. What happens when we miss the will of God?\par We can miss it, you know. God made us with volition, and we are able to exercise that volition contrary to his wishes. We can thwart his perfect plan for our lives. We can go our own way.\par \pard\keepn\s3\sb60\sa60\b\f0\fs24 Off the Track\cf2\f1\par \pard\sb60\sa60\cf1\b0\fs20 The Bible frankly tells us about people who resisted God\rquote s will. In fact, the very first people we meet in its pages did that very thing. God created Adam and Eve to glorify himself through worship, fellowship, and obedient service. But they decided that their way would be more exciting and satisfy\-ing than his way, so they exercised their wills in opposition to him. Their descendants have been following their lead ever since.\par People assert their own wills for many different reasons. Abraham t