Harmony with God's Will

. . . always labouring fervently for you in prayers, 

that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. 

Colossians 4:12

Following the born-again experience and motivated by love for God, the goal of the believer is to walk in harmony with the will of God.

Before the born-again experience, man walks in His own way which is exactly opposite of the will of God. After the new birth experience, a believer should anticipate walking in complete harmony with God's will. Since he is a new creature in Christ, 

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17

he expects to be able to conform exactly to God's will. But in the reality of daily life, his pattern of conformity  is often hindered by desiring to do things his way; reliance on tradition and man, the influences of the world and of Satan.

Instead of exact conformity to God's will, we may begin with an "up and down" experience. Sometimes we hear God's voice and does His will. Other times, if we be honest with our selves, we do not. Sadly, sometimes we hear the voice of God and ignore it.  Then we become greatly discouraged when we make mistakes and miss God's will. Some even give up in their quest to hear God's voice.  But, the scripture tells us the church at Ephesus labored without fainting:  

I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.   Revelation 2:2-3

We don't want to become confused and miss something important! While it is true that sometimes the believer misses God's will, note that the overall direction in our relationship with God is upward. Although we may fall short of the will of God at times, the overall pattern is one of progress.  Like God did with David, He looks at the condition of our heart:

But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7

The important thing is that when we stray from the will of God, we realize it, learn from the experience, and we come back into conformity to God's plan.  We should never give up because of a failure:

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,   Hebrews 12:1

Through failure as well as success, the believer is learning to hear God's voice. Through both positive and negative experiences, he is continuing his growth in understanding the principles of a God-directed life.

Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.    Psalms 37:24

When the will of God is perceived in this manner, it becomes a liberating relationship with Him in which you are privileged to live. The will of God ceases to become just a set of rules, legality, restrictions or commandments. It becomes a challenge of learning to align our life with His plan.

Consider the example of King David:

When David first became king, he walked in conformity to the will of God. God even called David a man after His own heart. But then David sinned with another man's wife which gave birth to an illegitimate child. This was in direct disobedience to God's written Word. David came before the Lord in repentance, was forgiven, and came back in alignment with God's will.

Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.   Psalms 51:1

It is the overall pattern of your conformity to God's will that is important.

Through every experience of learning to know God's voice, both positive and negative, you can continue to advance in your ability to discern God's perfect will for your life. Continue to strive for conformity despite occasional failures. Don’t ever give up!  Desire to be like Apostle Paul when he proclaimed:

I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:   2 Timothy 2:7

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