What's God's Corona-will for you?

Hey Lighthouse/Fort George,

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of Him. (1 John 5:14-15)

Have you ever wondered "What does God want from me?  What is His will for me?"  Have you ever come across verses like the one above and thought "That seems a little simpler than my experience?"

If you have, you are not alone.  In fact "What is God's will for my life?" is one of the most frequent questions I'm asked as a pastor.  And this kind of question is usually tied to a big decision that needs to be made, like a relationship you are in the middle of, or a couple programs at school you need to decide between, or a job opportunity you've been offered.  And the desire is to know "What does God have for me?"  It's a great question!

And now, with the world being totally thrown for a loop, so many of the plans we had made have been disrupted, and lots of people are wondering "What comes next?"  Does God have a plan for me in the middle of this lock down?  If you are a Jesus-follower these are the kinds of questions you are concerned with.  And the answer is "yes."  Yes, God has a will for you in the middle of Coronavirus.

I think there are two parts to this will.  The first has to do with breaking our confidence in ourselves.  Right now so many of our plans have been thrown out the window and the words of James ring in our ears:

Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit.”  How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone.  What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.”  Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil. (James 4:13-16)

And so God's will is to get us to trust Him rather than rely on ourselves.  But I think there is a second part of God's will right now that goes even deeper than this.  I came across a 10-minute video by Francis Chan that speaks to God's will for us in this time, and I found it really encouraging.  He's addressing his church in Hong Kong, but there's stuff here for us in Prince George too.  I hope you are blessed by it.

Stand strong in your faith!

Pastor Dan