How Do I Know God’s Plan For My Life?

What a day to celebrate God’s work among us. With 69 people across our campuses stepping into the waters of baptism, I talked about how we discern God’s plan for our lives. I framed faith like a three‑legged stool with three “meters”: Is God real? Can God provide? What is God’s plan? If the first meter isn’t pegged—if I’m not settled that God is real—then the other two wobble. The second meter, God’s provision, will have ups and downs, but it can’t be a roller coaster of extremes. As that stabilizes, we can actually engage the third meter—God’s plan—with growing confidence.

From Ephesians 2:10, we’re God’s masterpiece, created anew in Christ to do good works He prepared long ago. The enemy tries to distort that by using sin to separate us from the confidence that God is good and that He gives good things. Psalm 119:68 says, “You are good, and You do only good.” That’s true in pain and in joy. If I anchor there, I can learn to live under a “yes” rather than a “no.” Before the world began, God said yes to you (Ephesians 1:4), and He proved it by sending Christ while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8). So I challenged us to say yes more often—especially when it comes to blessing others and sharing our faith—trusting that if we step onto the wrong path, God knows how to close doors.

I confessed a moment when I missed it—at Burger King—after Kim sensed we should buy a family’s lunch. I rationalized, and we learned later the parents removed their own meals to afford their kids’. I blew it. You won’t get it right every time either. But the way forward is practice: say yes, act, and learn the Shepherd’s voice in motion. And please stop praying your way out of obedience. Don’t use “I’ll pray about it” to stall until fear sounds like wisdom. Joshua 1:9 reminds us to be strong and courageous because God is with us wherever we go. Let the gravity of God move your life like a raindrop finding its path. Believe He is good, live under His yes, and pray your way into obedience. Today’s baptisms are a chorus of yeses—let’s keep saying ours.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Anchor in God’s unchanging goodness Believing God is good in both pain and joy fortifies the heart to trust His leading. Sin distorts our view of Him, but Scripture corrects our lens: He is good and does good. When that conviction takes root, it changes how we interpret circumstances and quiets the inner panic. Confidence in His character precedes clarity about His plan. [20:14]
• 2. Live beneath God’s prior yes Before you were born, God chose you in love; Christ died for you while you were still a sinner. That means your starting point is not auditioning for God’s favor—it’s responding to it. When you operate from God’s prior yes, you risk obedience more readily because your identity is secure. Let His election silence your self‑disqualification. [22:18]
• 3. Practice obedience to learn His voice You won’t discern God’s voice from theory alone; you learn it in motion. Start with simple acts of blessing and bold acts of witness—God often speaks through small nudges. Even if you misread a moment, humility keeps you teachable and moving. Over time, your reflex shifts from hesitation to holy responsiveness. [27:17]
• 4. Stop praying yourself into safe disobedience “I’ll pray about it” can be a holy practice—or a polite stall. When fear masquerades as discernment, you’re not waiting on God; you’re negotiating with reluctance. Pray to align, not to avoid; pray your way into obedience, not out of it. Courage grows when you decide quicker and trust deeper. [29:04]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [08:34] - Baptism Sunday energy
• [09:34] - “You Asked For It” series kickoff
• [10:10] - Three meters of faith
• [12:04] - God’s plan as the third meter
• [14:39] - Stabilizing belief in God’s provision
• [15:30] - When personal plans fall apart
• [18:04] - Masterpiece and good works (Eph 2:10)
• [19:32] - How sin skews God’s goodness
• [21:46] - Living under a yes, not a no
• [23:39] - Practicing yes: generosity and witness
• [29:04] - Stop praying your way out of obedience
• [31:51] - Raindrop and God’s gravity
• [33:44] - Celebrate baptisms and closing prayer

1. What does Ephesians 2:10 say about the relationship between being created in Christ and the “good works” God prepared? [18:04]
2. What claim about God does Psalm 119:68 make, and how does that claim shape the way a person might interpret both pain and joy? [20:14]
3. What are the three “meters” of faith (Is God real? Can God provide? What is God’s plan?) and how does the sermon describe the way they interact to form a stable faith? [10:10]
4. What concrete examples were given of choosing to say “yes” (the Burger King moment, the people getting baptized), and what do those examples show about risk, obedience, and outcomes? [24:01]

1. What does calling people “God’s masterpiece” imply about their identity and about the expectation that they will walk into the good works God prepared for them? [18:04]
2. How does anchoring belief in “God is good” change the way someone reads setbacks or confusing circumstances when trying to discern God’s plan? [20:14]
3. How should the three‑legged stool metaphor shape the order of a person’s spiritual work when doubt is present (which meter should be addressed first, and why)? [10:34]
4. What are the practical consequences of using “I’ll pray about it” as a way to delay a decision, and how does praying to move toward a yes differ from praying to avoid action? [29:04]

1. “God is good and does only good.” When you face difficulty this week, what would it look like to rehearse that truth out loud or in prayer before reacting? Be specific about one situation you can try this in. [20:14]
2. “God chose you before the world began.” What one fear or “I’m not enough” story keeps you from saying yes to a new step of obedience, and what is one small, specific step you can take this week to act from God’s prior yes? [22:18]
3. Practicing obedience helps you learn God’s voice. Who could you intentionally bless or tell about Jesus in the next 48 hours as an experiment in obedience, and exactly how will you do it? [27:17]
4. Stop praying your way out of obedience. What invitation are you currently postponing with “I’ll pray about it,” and what deadline will you set this week to decide and act instead of stall? [29:04]
5. We won’t get it right every time (the Burger King example). Recall a time you missed a nudge to bless someone: what did you learn, and how will that learning change your next response to a similar nudge? [24:01]
6. Baptism and public yeses move a life forward. Who in your life needs encouragement to take a visible step of faith (baptism, sharing testimony, serving), and what one thing can this group do this week to support them? [33:32]