How do you know when to take difficulties as God's closing doors?

[Davidius]

Do you think that God reveals a path for us, not by speaking to us somehow, but by "closing doors"? Say that you are currently on one path, but there is another possible path which you don't find necessarily disagreeable. At what point would you say that all kinds of difficulties on path A are signs that God is closing doors there, and that you should give up there and perhaps take path B instead? Or should we always just assume that difficulties are trials for our personal development and stay on that path?

 

[Casey]

Good question. I remember some Christian (charismatic) friends of mine in college who would interpret events in their lives as either God telling them something or the devil telling them something. The decision wasn't based on whether either choice was contrary to God's will. I never did figure out how they knew who was "trying" to control them . . .

 

[Davidius]

Good question. I remember some Christian (charismatic) friends of mine in college who would interpret events in their lives as either God telling them something or the devil telling them something. The decision wasn't based on whether either choice was contrary to God's will. I never did figure out how they knew who was "trying" to control them . . .

Right, a similar way of approaching life nearly drove me insane back when I was a charismatic. But is there any correct way to approach the idea of God "closing doors"?

 

[A5pointer]

I like the plan of "love and obey God and do as you wish" I do not believe in any reading of circumstances as signs from God. Use wisdom and proceed as you see fit.

 

[Casey]

I can't think of any Scripture supporting the idea of "reading" circumstances in your life in the "door closing" way, can you? It's one thing for the Spirit to tell Paul to go here instead of there, but I don't think that's what we're talking about. And I get the idea that Paul didn't debate whether it was the Spirit speaking or his feelings speaking.

 

[Davidius]

I can't think of any Scripture supporting the idea of "reading" circumstances in your life in the "door closing" way, can you? It's one thing for the Spirit to tell Paul to go here instead of there, but I don't think that's what we're talking about. And I get the idea that Paul didn't debate whether it was the Spirit speaking or his feelings speaking.

So what exactly happened to Paul? Was he being spoken to verbally?

 

[Casey]

So what exactly happened to Paul? Was he being spoken to verbally?

I don't know. But I don't recall off the top of my head anyone in Scripture ever wondering if it was really God who spoke to them when God really did speak.

 

[JoelYrick]

This book goes through tons of justifications for trying to read circumstances to determine God's will. Thankfully, we know that the Scriptures are able to equip us for every good work and we aren't required to guess at what those things are. After that, we are given wisdom to handle situations.

 

[JohnV]

I just ask my Magic 8 Ball.

Josh:

That's not Urim and Thummim no matter what you might think. There's too big a chance of it becoming Urim and Thumb It.

 

[JohnV]

I like the plan of "love and obey God and do as you wish" I do not believe in any reading of circumstances as signs from God. Use wisdom and proceed as you see fit.

This is sort of close to what I would answer, except I wouldn't put it that way. I think God speaks to the conscience, so you should be doing two things at the same time: let your conscience be guided; and be guided by your conscience. In that order, I would say. That is to say that your conscience will tell you things about what you're doing, but your conscience has to be trained to listen to the Spirit's leading through the various normal means.

 

[shackleton]

I read a book entitled, "Finding the Will of God" by Bruce Waltke. He talks about things used to "find God's will" as being like the pagan notion of turning to things for wisdom.

This article outlines it somewhat

http://www.chafer.edu/journal/back_issues/v7n3_br.pdf

 

[jwithnell]

We can only be rightly guided by what is clearly given in the Bible. Even "conscience" can be confused with willful thinking unless you are bringing to mind what is given in scripture.

That said, we can face a tough situation when we have opportunities that can both be supported by the Bible. In that case, there can be "wisdom in the counsel of many." Sometimes, a brother might bring out an angle that we had not considered, and make the decision clearer.

God is sovereign, and in retrospect, I could say He closed doors for me in the past. But I'd be hard pressed to give up on something that I know is right just because the going gets difficult -- or to skate down a path just because it is easy, but may not lead to what is best.

 

[Bygracealone]

JW said it well.

I might throw this familiar passage into the mix:

Proverbs 3:5-6 5
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.

 

[a mere housewife]

If several paths are equally justified by the moral law, I don't think it's like trying to read something secret to take providences into consideration --not as the determining factor, but as a factor. I don't think that turns anything into a guessing game. You are still using your wisdom to make the best decision you can. I do think that sometimes after you've made your best decision and have not chosen immorally, God can, and does, 'close doors' --in the sense that He either makes something simply impossible, or He makes the conflict of a certain situation with your priorities even more clear. This isn't something one is left guessing about either. If something is impossible, it simply isn't a possibility. And as regards the second, we've experienced something like that when it became clear that I would die if we stayed in Mexico.

 

[A5pointer]

I like the plan of "love and obey God and do as you wish" I do not believe in any reading of circumstances as signs from God. Use wisdom and proceed as you see fit.

This is sort of close to what I would answer, except I wouldn't put it that way. I think God speaks to the conscience, so you should be doing two things at the same time: let your conscience be guided; and be guided by your conscience. In that order, I would say. That is to say that your conscience will tell you things about what you're doing, but your conscience has to be trained to listen to the Spirit's leading through the various normal means.

Texts to support that?

 

[JohnV]

I like the plan of "love and obey God and do as you wish" I do not believe in any reading of circumstances as signs from God. Use wisdom and proceed as you see fit.

This is sort of close to what I would answer, except I wouldn't put it that way. I think God speaks to the conscience, so you should be doing two things at the same time: let your conscience be guided; and be guided by your conscience. In that order, I would say. That is to say that your conscience will tell you things about what you're doing, but your conscience has to be trained to listen to the Spirit's leading through the various normal means.

Texts to support that?

I'm doing a series on Romans for family devotions on Sunday mornings. Its taken from the same format as the Heidelberg Catechism. What I wrote above is more reflection than doctrine taken from these devotionals, which I have carried in my heart pretty well all my life. I started the Sunday devotions with Romans 3, like the Catechism, but the above thought comes more from chs. 1 - 2, and 7 -8.