Week Eight: Discerning God’s Will. February 19: Finding the Way Forward
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. Thomas Merton
Gregg’s Reflection
How do you discern the next steps in your path? How will you know when you find the path? This week we wade into the spiritual practice of discerning God’s will so you can follow God’s faint path.
In my early years as a Christian, I had little sense of direction. I had read in Carlos Castaneda’s The Teachings of Don Juan that “for each of us there is a path with a heart,” but I didn’t know how to find it. Prayer was not a regular part of my life, and though I attended church and joined small groups, deeper disciplines came slowly.
The promise in Jeremiah that God has a plan for our welfare gave me hope. Searching would eventually lead to finding. Over time, I realized how often I missed the gentle movements of God’s Spirit—quiet nudges pointing in directions I had not planned. God does not push; the Spirit comes softly, like a whisper or a breeze.
After selling the business before turning 50, I felt called to equip next-generation leaders. That calling took a decade to find its home—eventually in teaching Discover Your Design, a course helping others discern their gifts, values, passions, and calling. In that season, I found Thomas Merton’s prayer about uncertainty, and it became a comfort to me and to those I mentored.
Apart from God’s love, we drift without anchor. Divine guidance often comes through books we read, nature’s beauty, the people we meet, and the events we experience—if we are listening.
Scripture
For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 29:11–13
Ancient Quotes
Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will, all I have and call my own. You have given all to me. To you, Lord, I return it. Everything is yours; do with it what you will. Give me only your love and your grace, that is enough for me.
Ignatius of Loyola, Suscipe Prayer
Modern Quotes
My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.
But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it.
Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.
Thomas Merton Thoughts in Solitude, p. 79
Journaling Prompts
- When have you sensed a gentle nudge from God that shaped your direction?
- Where in your life do you most need divine guidance right now?
- What practices help you notice God’s leading?
- How might you create more space to listen for God’s voice?
👉 Go deeper into this week’s theme:
Read the full Week 8 Reflection: Discerning God’s Will