Desiring God’s Will by David G. Benner
“Learning to prefer God’s way to ours and discovering our identity and fulfillment in God’s kingdom way demands that we know Love, deeply and personally.”
Rating: 4/5
We all want to do God’s will. Or at least, those of us who have an inkling that God’s guidance is necessary want his direction in our wandering life. The problem is that all too often, we desire God’s will in a moment of decision-making or crisis.
“God, what should I do?? Should I choose A or B?”
We lay out fleeces, hoping that God will send us some miraculous sign from heaven.
David G. Benner says bluntly,
"Too often, however, the problem is not that we don’t know what God desires for our lives, but rather that we just don’t want to do what we already know he wants.”
Ouch.
If we dare to peer inward into the deepest places of our souls, we will acknowledge that he is right. Too often, we want God’s stamp of approval on our already-planned-out-plans. We hem and we haw over a decision when, if we really face what’s inside of us, we already know the way that God wants for us.
It’s the age-old battle of wills: ours against God’s.
Benner digs into the various ways in which our will can assert itself, namely rigidity and pride.
Rigidity is the overexertion of self-control in one’s life. It is the “stubborn, inflexible determination to live my life my way.” It is a desire to control your life and everyone in it. Unfortunately, this sort of rigidity is often linked to piety, but self-righteousness might be a better term.
It might look like demanding that worship is done a certain way, insisting on a KJV-only reading of the Bible, expecting your kids to be perfectly behaved in all situations, or snapping at your spouse for interrupting your alone time.
Pride is the smug sense of superiority evident in those who exert a high level of self-discipline in their lives. This can also lend toward self-righteousness as willpower is seen as the ultimate Christian virtue. As a result, there can be a tendency toward judging others who are perceived to lack willpower.
This might look like having a rigorous schedule of fasting and exercise, tightly-timed periods of worship or Bible study, high discipline in work, eating habits, or sleeping patterns, and contempt for those who just don’t seem to have it all together as you do.
You might scoff at these descriptions.
Or you might cringe if they sound familiar. I cringed when I read them because I recognized my own tendencies toward rigid self-control and smug judgmentalism.
Benner pulls no punches. He is completely honest about the subtle corruptions of our hearts.
It makes one consider:
In what ways am I exerting my own willpower and calling it holiness?
For the rest of the book, Benner discusses how we can bring our wills into submission to God’s will and how we can desire God’s will above our own.
As with all of his books, Benner provokes deep thought and reflection on the condition of your heart. It is a small book (134 pages) and easy to read, but it penetrates the soul if you stop to listen to the Spirit’s correcting voice.
Our desires, our wants, our longings, our outward and inward searching - when uncovered, expressed, and recognized - all lead to the Divine Beloved… All our desires ultimately lead us to God.
(Janet Ruffing, as quoted by Benner)
Sure, desiring God’s will is important for discernment. But ultimately, our desires point to God, belong to God, and choose God’s way over ours as we pray, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done.”
Are you willing to take that step?
It’s a hard, uncertain journey. It requires giving up what you know is sure for that which you know nothing of. Aligning your will with God’s will means leaving behind that which brings death and embracing that which gives life. It also means embracing those desires within yourself that God has placed there.
You can find Desiring God’s Will on Amazon and you can read more reviews on it on Goodreads!
I hope you enjoy the ride, wild and uncontrollable as it is!
In courage and in love,
Katelyn
“If we trust that God is intimately concerned with who we are and who we are becoming, then we can have tremendous hope that the foundational chapters of our lives, as well as those to come, are intended for our maturity.”