do you want to know what God's will is?

do not confirm any longer to the patterns of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:2

This is one of my life verses. People read this and immediately recognise the patterns of this world as worldly behaviour - immoral, sexual, material, self-centred behaviours.

Yes these are patterns of this world BUT I sometimes wonder if people recognise these patterns within churches, within christian tradition and religious behaviour...for me worldly patterns include christian practices which have lost their real meaning.

How can we test and approve God's will if we don't know what we are meant to NOT conform to? How is an ordinary salt of the earth Christian suppose to recognise what is God's pattern and what is this world's pattern? How do we know what we are meant to conform to OR not conform to?

For me it's simple:

• you need a personal relationship with the LORD. There is no way around this. The LORD is not interested in lip service or doing churchy stuff because it's what good christians do...he's interested in having a life changing relationship with each of us. Is your life changing?
• are you doing it because you want to, and the LORD has led you to this decision? OR are you doing it because everyone else is doing it and it's expected of you?
• are you doing it out of a desire to know the LORD more, to have a personal relationship with him, to put him first? OR are you doing it to please others, because you want a relationship with other people firstly and foremost?
• do you feel guilty if you don't? OR feel guilty if you do? Guilt is not from the LORD. Guilt is Satan trying to condemn you. It feels very different from the LORD convicting you. SATAN CONDEMNS YOU = GUILT.......... GOD CONVICTS YOU = SET YOU FREE, LIFTS YOU

The great thing about the LORD is that he gives us plenty of practice - so if we get it wrong, we can surrender it to him, and try again.

It also helps to remember that the LORD treats us as unique individuals, so what works for you might not work for someone else. That's why we need to have a personal relationship with the LORD, he made us and he knows us better than we know ourselves.