"Just tell me yes or no!! One or the other!! Even if it's not the answer I want, at least then I'll know what you want, and I'll do what you say and move on." - A frustrated and confused Zach Harris, to God, at various times in the past

   This is possibly the most pressing, practical question of the Christian life. "How do I know God's will? How do I make daily major and minor decisions that are in His will?" Countless books have been written. You've probably read a couple of them. Search the internet and find countless websites offering advice.
   May I just offer a few thought provoking ideas? Obviously I won't say everything that needs to be said. Obviously I can't offer a completely balanced and comprehensive perspective on all the principles involved. But there are a few thoughts that I think really need to be provoked, and those are the ones that I want to provoke.

   Basic Axiom: I begin with the assumption that those who I'm sending this to are already convinced that the Bible is their ultimate rule for faith and practice. Without this assumption, our conversation would have to start at a different point.

   1) When you read these books or websites about "knowing God's will", or hear sermons or seminars on "knowing God's will", check your Bible! There are a lot of things taught from personal experience, or "common sense", or out-of-context Scripture verses. There may or may not be some value in the principles taught. Test them! Examine them against Scripture. Most of the things taught, in my opinion, "sound reasonable." But don't test them against your reason! Test them against Scripture. In the process, you may come to different conclusions from me about what is Biblical. Fine, when I ask you about your decision making process you can give me a well-grounded Biblical basis, and we can learn from each other's Biblical insights. But don't merely accept the "wisdom" of respected authors, pastors, friends, yourself, myself, etc. Be like the Bereans who examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul [the apostle!!] said was true. (Acts 17:11)
2) Along those same lines. I think we can agree that "guidance" and godly decision making and "knowing God's will" are an extremely important part of your life. I think then, it would be well-worth the effort to sit down, and see if you can write out or speak out explicitly in words the process, or principles that you lean on in this area. Do you "pray about" major decisions? Do you expect to "hear" an answer in your heart, in your experience, in Scripture, through a "sense of peace"? Maybe you don't have a process or principles. Maybe you say, "God works with me differently every time." OK, fine, then write that down. Whatever it is: principles or lack of principles, steps or lack of steps, write it down.
   Now, go to the Scripture and test what you have written. What does Scripture say, or not say, about your view on "guidance"? Are you doing things Scripture doesn't teach? Are you not doing things that it did teach?
   [Some will object here. Damn, Zach, you're obsessed with the Bible. Can't I do anything without having a Biblical justification? Do I have to check the Bible before going to the toilet? OK, point noted. But on a topic as important as this, which effects your daily minor decision making and you lifelong major decision making in life, isn't it worthwhile to at least be aware of yourself, be aware of what things you are doing in your decision making process that are Biblical, which are extra-Biblical, and which are unbiblical? I think so. I know it may sound like a chore. And I know that reading my long emails is a chore. Its just a suggestion, its up to you.]
   And when you test your views (and others' views) on "guidance" and decision making, please read (even better, study) the verses in context. For example, in John 10 Jesus said, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." It is a lovely verse, but what is it talking about? Is it a verse about getting "guidance" from God in decision making, that Jesus will "guide" our path by moving in our spirits and when our spirits "resonate" in a certain way with certain feelings we are "hearing Jesus' voice"? Study John 10! What is John 10 actually talking about? I claim the chapter has nothing to do with "guidance" and " decision making", as the terms normally apply.

   Now, some of the thought provoking conclusions that I have come to. Where you disagree, and have Biblical reasons why, I would like to hear. I have shared some of these thoughts with some friends in Christ, and some things were found to be disturbing. Fine! I find some of them disturbing myself. I say, better to be disturbed by Scriptural truth than "at peace" with unbiblical concepts.

3) The Scripture has a lot to say about wisdom and good decision making. The whole book of Proverbs is dedicated to it. Don't look down on the significance of "wisdom" as if it were somehow "inferior" or "less spiritual" than other supposed forms of "guidance" such as "promptings by the Holy Spirit" and "strong impressions on the heart."

4) The two most clear and explicit verses in the NT about "knowing God's will", in my opinion, are Romans 12:2, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect," and Ephesians 5:15-17, "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." These verses put the emphasis on a "transformed mind", on "wisdom" rather than folly, on "understanding", and on "discernment."

5) There is consistently something called "inquiring of the Lord" in the Old Testament. A look through the concordance at the numerous occasions where this phrase is used reveals some very consistent patterns. 1) A very clear answer is given, or in some cases it is explicitly stated that no answer was given. But there are no cases of, "I think God is saying...". 2) In general, people did not inquire of the Lord themselves. They had to find a certain person who would inquire of the Lord "on their behalf." That person seems to have been either been a prophet (most common) or a priest at the temple who had the Urim and Thummim by which to inquire of the Lord. Some of the most clear summary verses on this point: 1 Sam 9:9, "(Formerly in Israel, if a man went to inquire of God, he would say, "Come, let us go to the seer," because the prophet of today used to be called a seer.)" 1 Sam 28:6, "He inquired of the LORD, but the LORD did not answer him by dreams or Urim or prophets." 1 Kings 22:7, "But Jehoshaphat asked, "Is there not a prophet of the LORD here whom we can inquire of?" Note: In a few cases a person with a question does appear to inquire of the Lord themself. However, in most of those cases the person involved IS a prophet, so perhaps they need not GO to a prophet. David is the most prominent example and he inquires of the Lord numerous times. Note that Scripture explicitly tells us that David was a prophet (Acts 2:29-30). Still, even David regularly consulted the prophets Gad and Nathan.
   What happens when we turn to the New Testament? As I see it, the idea of "prophet" can be categorized in the NT in at least four different ways. 1) "The Prophets" is a division of the Hebrew Scriptures, along with the "Law", that Jesus "fulfilled." (Mt 5:17) 2) Referring to the prophets of the past, including those prophets who wrote the books of "The Prophets." There seems to be a sense in which their role was completed in John the Baptist, since their role was to fortell and prepare the way for the Messiah. "For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John." (Mt 11:13) 3) "New Testament prophets" including several examples in Acts (see also 1 Cor 12, 14, Eph 3:5, 4:11, 1 Tim 4:14, and others). These prophets don't add to the canon of Scripture, but fulfill other useful roles in edifying the body of Christ by speaking clear, timely, words from the Lord. 4) False prophets, who we are warned against, and some examples in NT times are seen. (As with my "apostles" stance, the warning against false ones seems to be a further evidence for the existence of true ones.)
   My conclusion. God speaks! But not equally to all people. Most of us will only ever "hear God" in the Scriptures. But some are gifted to receive clear words from God in answer to specific needs, which of course will be in line with Scriptural truth, except in the case of false prophecy (which in OT times was punishable by death). I believe the gift of prophecy exists today, and that it is needed, just as with other gifts. The balance to that is that I also believe there are a number of people out there, following a wing of Christian "prophetic subculture", who in the midst of their excitement over supernatural manifestations are claiming to have a gift of prophecy and in fact have no such thing at all. They often utter prophecies as vague as the newspaper horoscope, that could be construed in so many ways that the listener is most likely to get out of it whatever he/she wants to hear. This is very harmful.

6) A lot of modern evangelical pop culture jargon is not found in Scripture. For example, "I think God is telling me...", "I think God is leading me...", "I think God is calling me..." When God SPEAKS and LEADS and CALLS people in Scripture, they don't say, "I think", they say, "Yes, Lord", or they run away. But they don't say, "I think." [Some of you are getting frustrated with me, "Zach, do you mean to say God doesn't lead me? I know he does." God loves you and knows the number of hairs on your head and cares about the major directions and the minor details of your life! I'm sure! I do believe that God leads you, and I do believe that He teaches you. But first of all I am making an OBSERVATION that a lot of our Christian jargon doesn't come from Scripture. I'm saying we need to THINK about the things we say, and what do we actually mean, and what are we basing it on?]

7) A lot of modern evangelical pop culture concepts for how God "speaks to us" don't seem to have a solid Biblical foundation, in my opinion. I think in many of these case, we take our preconceived ideas, and find Scripture references to fit around them.
   a) The "still small voice" by which God supposedly leads us seems to be largely drawn from 1 Kings 19, "Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" Note: 1) Elijah was a prophet. Most people in Scripture (and I would say today) hear NEITHER a loud nor a soft audible voice of God. Elijah, the prophet, heard both. 2) God was already in the midst of communicating with Elijah, the prophet, when this "gentle whisper" event happened (read the beginning of the chapter). It wasn't that Elijah "quieted his heart" enough so as to hear the "quiet voice of God." Not at all.
   Beware, I say, of the non-Scriptural idea of trying to "listen in prayer" to hear God's "quiet voice." I don't see Scriptural support for this idea of "listening to God in prayer." I know some people like it because it seems to add a "personal" dimension to prayer, making it "more of a dialogue than a monologue." Frankly, I don't see that prayer is SUPPOSED to be a dialogue. I don't see Scriptural support for this notion, and I think that when you eagerly try to "hear God's quiet voice" you open yourself up to hearing YOUR OWN quiet voice speaking to yourself in silent meditation, and ascribing that voice to God. More on that later.
   b) The "voice of Jesus." I mentioned earlier John 10, where Jesus says "My sheep know my voice." The verse, out of context, gives a picture of Jesus "guiding" our decisions such that our spirit will "recognize" His voice when ever He is "speaking to us." I don't think that's what the passage is about at all.
   c) The "promptings" and "burdens" of the Holy Spirit. Read John 14 and 16 and similar verses, and discern what we know the Holy Spirit does do and He doesn't necessarily do. Yes, we learn that it is His role to, "convict the world of guilt." But that absolutely doesn't mean the absence of a feeling of guilt implies the Holy Spirit's approval! Yes, the Holy Spirit "teaches" and "guides" us into truth. But how? Primarily, I believe, through reminding us of the words of Jesus (John 14:26), and, as Jesus Himself did, opening our minds to understand the Scripture (Lk 24:45).
   This fact upsets people, but I confidently claim that a "strong impression" on your heart or "on your spirit" is not necessarily the Holy Spirit. Nor is the magnitude of the strength of your feeling proportionate to the likelihood that it is "of God." I don't see in Scripture that the Holy Spirit's role includes giving us direct "promptings" or "burdens" about decisions. The Holy Spirit IS involved in your sanctification, though. So if you feel "prompted" to do something good, you can thank the Holy Spirit, who has rebuilt your fallen conscience, so that it feels about things the way it should feel about things.
   Look, I don't deny that the Holy Spirit CAN or MAY "prompt" us or put "impulses on our heart." But we do need to have the discernment to realize that a sudden, unexplainable "impulse" on your heart: 1) doesn't necessarily require a supernatural source, 2) even if the source is supernatural it isn't necessarily the Holy Spirit. So just beware, OK? I'm not asking you to ignore all "promptings" on your heart. I'm just asking for discernment. And though they may occur, DON'T look to such promptings as your source of "guidance." I don't think God ever promised to lead us that way, and we can't claim from God promises He hasn't made.

8) Hebrews 1 opens up with, "In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe." Hallelujah! What does this mean? "In these last days he has spoken to us by his Son"? Does it mean, "Now that we have a personal relationship with the Son, He communicates directly to our hearts. So the words of the prophets (Scripture) are less important for us in Christ today"? To answer that, I only ask the interested party to read the rest of the book of Hebrews. See the means employed by the man himself who wrote these introductory verses. The rest of the book of Hebrews is the most thick Scriptural exposition of any book of the Bible, dedicated thoroughly to understanding Jesus through the existing Hebrew Scriptures!

9) Again, reconsider our evangelical cliche phrases,
   a) "Finding God's plan for your life." First, ask yourself, what does the Scripture actually teach about God's "plan for your life." Does God have a "plan for your life"? If so, what does that mean? What does it include? A popular verse is Jeremiah 29:11-13. 1) We should OBSERVE that this passage is directed to the Jewish Babylonian exiles. That doesn't mean it doesn't apply to us. But we should FIRST understand ANY verse it in its original context, rather than directly applying its words to us. 2) We should note that God basically promises to do good to these exiles and draw them to Himself. God wants to do good to Israel! But the point of this passage isn't His specific plan for each individual, "I have plans for who I want you to marry, when, which job to take, for how long, which ministry to be involved with, how frequently, etc., etc. I have all the details planned out and you better be careful not to miss it."
   Now, it is certain that God does have plans to do good for His elect (Rom 8:28). Without getting astray into the topic of the nature of God's Sovereignty, let's just assume, for the sake of argument that God does have "specific plans" for every detail of your life. Does Scripture give any indication that you are supposed to try to "figure out" what those plans are? I don't see the idea in Scripture that we are supposed to try to figure God's Sovereign plan for us. I see that we are supposed to love Him, love our neighbor, and in the midst of living a holy life God will fulfill His sovereign plans in ways we don't expect. As a matter of fact, James 4:13-17 rebukes man for thinking he could know the Lord's Sovereign will.
   b) "I'm not sure what God is trying to tell me." Maybe that's because He's not "trying" to tell you something. Did God ever say that He wants to supernaturally "guide" the important decisions of our lives? I don't think so. He's called us to make godly decisions with godly wisdom. When we EXPECT Him to "guide" our decisions, then we anxiously "try to listen", and we may very likely end up "hearing" things that God didn't say. See the quote below by Jonathan Edwards*.
   Now, it is also true that humanity seems to have a limitless capacity for hardening our hearts against what is in front of our faces. Consider those who killed the author of life! So, it may very well be true that some godly principle is right in front of our face, and we don't want to deal with it. You should examine yourself, and you should vulnerably expose your thoughts to others in fellowship so they can point out your sinful blindness. But in the end, if no blindness is found, perhaps God isn't "trying to tell you something", and you should make whatever decisions need to be made, and continuing living and loving God and your neighbor.
   c) "I really feel peace about it." I see in this phrase NO INDICATION whatsoever that God is "guiding" a person. First of all, our hardened hearts can "feel peace" about sin, and I believe they constantly do, everyday of our lives, including us as believers. Second, even if your feeling of "peace" is justified (you aren't in sin), that doesn't mean that God is "giving you peace" as a form of guidance. I see no such teaching in Scripture. If you made a godly decision and have peace about it, fine. Enjoy the peace that you feel for making a godly decision. The decision may justify the feeling of peace, but not vice versa.

10) In summary, God has revealed His will to us in Scripture. If you want to know "God's will for your life" listen up, I'm about to tell you. Love Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.
   But, you say, your question is more specific than that. OK, I can answer that too. There are two possibilities: 1) God has revealed His will about your situation in Scripture. Use godly wisdom in making a godly decision about how to apply His Word to your life. Not sure whether you should go into such and such ministry, marry so and so, give money to such and such, attend such and such church,...? Study the Scripture, and make a godly decision to apply His words in your life. 2) Maybe the Bible doesn't fully answer your question. Maybe it narrows down the possibilities, but seems to leave open various choices. I think it would be good to check with other believers to see if they have any insight you've missed. If, in the end several choices are left open, guess what? You have freedom to make a decision as you like! Follow your heart, cast lots, flip a coin, whatever suits you!
   Finally, we did also observe a consistent phenomena of "inquiring of the Lord" and receiving clear, direct words from the Lord through those He has specially gifted as prophets. I believe strongly that we need prophets in the church today. And I believe equally strongly that we are in danger of a tide of false prophecy, which either contradicts God's sure written Word, or subtly leads us away from dependence on it.

   *The following quote is from Jonathan Edwards, "Some Thoughts Concerning the Revival", Pg. 438. See if this 18th century writing doesn't pierce into your own thought life better than you could have described it yourself. It did for me.
   "But to return to the [topic] of impressions and immediate revelations; many lay themselves open to a delusion by expecting direction from heaven in this way, and waiting for it: in such a case it is easy for persons to imagine that they have it. They are perhaps at a loss concerning something, undetermined what they shall do, or what course they should take in some affair, and they pray to God to direct them, and make known to 'em his mind and will; and then, instead of expecting to be directed, by being assisted in consideration of the rules of God's Word, and their circumstances, and God's providence, and enabled to look on things in a true light, and justly to weigh them, they are waiting for some secret immediate influence on their minds, unaccountably swaying their minds and turning their thought or inclinations that way that God would have them go, and are observing their own minds to see what arises there, whether some ideas or inward motions and dispositions don't arise in something of an unaccountable manner that they may call a divine direction. Hereby the are exposed to two things. First, they lay themselves open to the Devil, and give him a fair opportunity to lead them where he pleases; for they stand ready to follow the first extraordinary impulse that they shall have, groundlessly concluding it is from God. And secondly, they are greatly exposed to be deceived by their own imaginations; for such an expectation awakens and quickens the imagination; and that oftentimes is called an uncommon impression, that is no such thing; and they ascribe that to the agency of some invisible being, that is owning only to themselves."

   Did Edwards overstate his case about such a man opening up himself to the devil? I don't think so. I present as evidence the Mormon deception. Those of you familiar with Mormonism will know the "test" offered by Mormon missionaries to convince you of the truth of the LDS church. You are simply to read the Book of Mormon, pray to God in the name of Christ, and God Himself will "testify" to you the truth of the book of Mormon. This "test" is based on a verse from the Book of Mormon itself, Moroni 10:4, ""And when ye shall receive these things [the Book of Mormon], I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost." I for one do not doubt that many Mormons, having done this, really HAVE had an "experience" of the well-known "burning in the bosom." Friends, as evangelicals, this should shock us. Look at Moroni 10:4, "Ask God... in the name of Christ... with a sincere heart... having faith in Christ... he will manifest the truth... by the power of the Holy Ghost." It could pass for perfect evangelical theology today! Be shocked. Please, be shocked.
   What is the problem with this Mormon test? God never taught us to "seek guidance" in this way! When we "seek guidance" in ways God didn't command, we open ourselves up to deception. And (get ready to again be shocked) asking for guidance "in Jesus' name", as the Mormons do, doesn't protect us from being deceived!!!
   To support their test from the Bible, Mormons will sometimes point to James 1:5, "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." Read it carefully, and note the change from Moroni. If any of you lacks WISDOM. A burning bosom is not wisdom! Any "secret immediate influence on their minds, unaccountably swaying their minds and turning their thought or inclinations that way that God would have them go" is not WISDOM. When we accept "guidance" by means that God has not taught us, we open ourselves to deception. And, since we are ignoring the way God has taught, and forsaking our genuine responsibility to make godly decisions with discernment, in the fear of the Lord, God is not obliged to protect us from the deceptions that we open ourselves to.
   I believe that as evangelicals, we are constantly encouraging each other to use the Moroni test for "guidance" in the Christian life. Thankfully, God is gracious. And to those He has chosen, He mercifully protects them from their own mistakes, and doesn't let them fall into irreparable harm. But God's mercy shouldn't cause us to continue opening ourselves to such harm.

   OBJECTIONS: 1) "I agree with this stuff about wisdom and knowing God's will from Scripture. But what about the significance of our personal relationship with God. God is not `distant' like in the OT. He is near and intimate to us, as our Father. And furthermore, what about the Holy Spirit who has come to dwell in us?"
   The godly wisdom I'm talking about IS based on relationship because "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." When I advocate wisdom, I am not advocating the foolishness that the world calls "wisdom". But rather Christian, Biblical, godly wisdom which is rooted in the fear of the Lord. And the work of the Holy Spirit in us IS critical, not in giving us "inner promptings", but in our utter dependency on the Holy Spirit to enlighten our mind to the correct understanding of God's word when we are confronted with Scripture. The ungodly hear Scripture and totally misunderstand. So a living relationship with God IS necessary for godly wisdom, but the manifestation of that is not primarily in "convictions" and " promptings" and "peace" and "feeling led by God", but in transformation of our mind and heart to understand and to love what God has already said.

2) "But in the Bible God does guide people directly, and through supernatural revelation at times." Yes. At times. For every one Moses who speaks with God "face-to-face" there are millions of Hebrews who "hear" God's Word through the "ordinary" means of reading it or hearing it taught by some ordinary guy. As mentioned above, I think that the church does need prophets, but those of us who are NOT prophets shouldn't try to remedy the situation by searching every movement of our heart and every little thought that flutters through our mind trying to "discern a message from God" out of it.

3) "I know God has led me in ways other than Scripture. You can't deny that." OK. 1) My point is to provide some thought provoking ideas. I'm not critiquing any one's particular decisions. I don't know all the intricacies involved with your situation. 2) If you feel " prompted" to do something, and it is a good, godly thing to do, fine. Do it. Perhaps the Holy Spirit was involved in "prompting" you, perhaps it was your own conscience, maybe it was indigestion. In any case, if the content of the "impulse" is a good thing to do, then listen to your indigestion, or your prodding conscience, or the Holy Spirit, and do it. But beware of such ideas as "God told me...", "God led me...", where you might be blaming God for something that isn't His fault.
   Also, if a subjective experience serves to REMIND you of Scriptural truth, great! I believe that God regularly works that way! If you see a poor person, and are "prompted" to help them, fine. God taught us to care for the poor. Perhaps in your daily sheltered life your heart has hardened and forgotten about them. The subjective experience comes around and reawakens your heart to the truth. Super. But I believe that Scripture should interpret experience, not vice versa.
   I also believe that God, the author of the Cosmic Drama, scripts countless sightings of Him into human lives and human history. If an experience REMINDS you of a Scriptural truth, great! The amazing Sovereign God has countless ways to do that. But beware of trying to "decipher" experiences as form of "raw guidance" without Scriptural principles. This is Christian divination.

4) "Zach, you are very analytically minded. Your view is biased against the subjective aspects of life and relationship with God. You don't have much regard for the heart, or feelings, or subjective experiences."
   As for feelings, I believe they are critically important. I don't think that the church over-emphasizes feelings, I strongly believe on the contrary that we UNDER emphasize feelings. I agree with Jonathan Edwards that, "True religion, in great part, consists in holy affections." And I think that an apathy or disregard towards emotions is one of the biggest sources of lifeless Christianity today.
   The question, though, which we must ask is, What is the proper PLACE for these important things called "emotions", "feelings", or "affections"? I claim they are critically important, but, how so? I see MANY indications in Scripture that we are to GUIDE our affections, and NOTHING in Scripture that we are to be GUIDED BY them. Their role is necessary, but their role is not to lead. They are to be led. They provide vitality, life, power, vigor, passion, motivation,... all the things that we sorely, sorely need. But they fulfill their role when they are BEING LED. They don't lead.

5) "But isn't full surrender to God important? Doesn't obedience to Him mean we should forsake our own desires and decisions, and just do what God says?" Yes! Do what God says. He says, "be transformed by the renewal of your mind", "make the best use of the time", "don't be foolish", "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength." So, do it! Obey Him. But if you obey Moroni, and wait for a burning bosom to make decisions for you, you are not obeying God! He never told you to do that!
   "Godly decision making" (which I support) seems less "spiritual" than the popular notion of "trying to find God's will for your life." I would argue, though, the contrary. Read the Scriptures and look at what God deems overall of importance in the lives of His people. He wants them to love God and each other, He wants them to live pure and holy lives being transformed in character into the image of Christ. In other words, its our character and holiness that matter, not so much whether we live in city A or B, work at job C or D, marry spouse F or G. I think God wants us to learn to make godly decisions, rather than making them for us, because in order for us to make godly decisions, our character must be transformed into His image. And that really seems to be His goal in us.

Finally, some more quotes from JI Packer and Jonathan Edwards: To many Christians, guidance is a chronic problem. Why? Not because they doubt that divine guidance is a fact, but because they are sure it is.... Their fear, therefore, is not that no guidance should be available for them, but that they may miss the guidance which God provides through some fault of their own... Earnest Christians seeking guidance often go wrong. Why is this? Often the reason is that their notion of the nature and method of divine guidance is distorted. They look for a will-o'-the-wisp; they overlook the guidance that is ready at hand and lay themselves open to all sorts of delusions.... What conduct of this sort shows is failure to grasp that the fundamental mode whereby our rational Creator guides his rational creatures is by rational understanding and application of his written Word.... But the true way to honor the Holy Spirit as our guide is to honor the holy Scriptures through which he guides us.... The basic form of divine guidance, therefore, is the presentation to us of positive ideals as guidelines for all our living.... Be it noted that the reference to being "led by the Spirit" in Romans 8:14 relates not to inward "voices" or any such experience, but to mortifying known sin and nor living after the flesh! - JI Packer, Knowing God, 20th Anniv Ed., pg 231-236 [Packer, does though, acknowledge what he calls "vocational guidance" that involves "inward promptings." I'm skeptical, and I don't see any Biblical support from Packer about this.]

Wisdom is divinely wrought in those, and those only, who apply themselves to God's revelation... People feel that if they were really walking close to God, so that he could impart wisdom to them freely, then they would, so to speak, find themselves in the signal- box; they would discern the real purpose of everything that happened to them, and it would be clear to them every moment how God was making all things work together for good. Such people spend much time poring over the book of providence, wondering why God should have allowed this or that to take place, whether they should take it as a sign to stop doing one things and start doing another, or what they should deduce from it. If they end up baffled, they put it down to their own lack of spirituality.
   Christians suffering from depression, physical, mental or spiritual (note, these are three different things!) may drive themselves almost crazy with this kind of futile inquiry. For it IS futile: make no mistake about that. It is true that when God has given us guidance by application of principles he will on occasion confirm it to us by unusual providences, which we will recognize at once as corroborative signs. But this is quite a different thing from trying to read a message about God's secret purposes out of every unusual thing that happens to us. So far from the gift of wisdom consisting in the power to do this, the gift actually presupposes our conscious inability to do it, as we shall see in a moment. - JI Packer, Knowing God, Pg 101-103, 20th Anniv Ed

"My sheep listen to my voice," says Jesus; "I know them, and they follow me" (Jn 10:27). His "voice" is his claim, his promise and his call... Jesus' voice is "heard" when Jesus' claim is acknowledged, his promise trusted and his call answered. From then on, Jesus is known as shepherd, and those who trust him he knows as his own sheep." - JI Packer, Knowing God, 20th -Anniv. Edition, Copy. 1973, Pg 38

"And why can't we be contented with the divine oracles, that holy, pure Word of God, that we have in such abundance and such clearness, now since the canon of Scripture is completed? Why should we desire to have anything added to them by impulses from above?... And why should we desire to make the Scripture speak more to us than it does? Or why should any desire any higher kind of intercourse with heaven, than that which is by having the Holy Spirit given in his sanctifying influences, infusing and exciting grace and holiness, love and joy, which is the highest kind of intercourse that the saints and angels in heaven have with God, and the chief excellency of the glorified man Christ Jesus?
   Some that follow impulses and impressions go away with a notion that they do no other than follow the guidance of God's Word, and make the Scripture their rule, because the impression is made with a text of Scripture that comes to their mind, though they take that text as it is impressed on their minds, and improve it as a new revelation, to all intents and purposes, or as the revelation of a particular things that is now newly made, while the text in itself, as it is in the Bible, implies no such thing, and they themselves do not suppose that any such revelation was contained in it before. As for instance, suppose that text should come into a person's mind with strong impression, Acts 9:6, `Arise and go into the city; and it shall be told thee what thou must do.' And he should interpret it as an immediate signification of the will of God, that he should now, forthwith go to such a neighbor town, and as a revelation of the future event, viz. that there he should meet with a further discovery of his duty.... This is quite a different thing from the Spirit's enlightening the mind to understand the precepts or propositions of the Word of God, and [ to] known what is contained and revealed in them, and what consequences may justly be drawn from them, and to see how they are applicable to our case and circumstances; which is done without any new revelation, only by enabling the mind to understand and apply a revelation already made.
   Those texts of Scripture that speak of the children of God as led by the Spirit, have been by some brought to defend a being guided by such impulses; as particularly those [in] Rom 8 :14, `For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God'; and Gal 5:18, `But if ye are led by the Spirit, ye are not under the law.' But these texts themselves confute them that bring them, for 'tis evident that the leading of the Spirit that the Apostle speaks of is a gracious leading, or what is peculiar to the children of God, and that natural men cannot have; ... but a leading or directing a person by immediately revealing to him where he should go, or what shall hereafter come to pass, or what shall be the future consequences of his doing thus or thus, if there be any such thing in these days, is not of the nature of the gracious leaning of the Spirit of God that is peculiar to God's children...
   There is a more excellent way that the Spirit of God leads the sons of God, that natural men cannot have, and that is by inclining them to do the will of God, and go in the shining path of truth and Christian holiness, from an holy heavenly disposition, which the Spirit of God gives them,... The sanctifying influence of the Spirit of God rectifies the taste of the soul, whereby it savors those things that are of God, and naturally relishes and delights in those things that are holy and agreeable to God's mind, and like one of a distinguishing taste, chooses those things that are good and wholesome, and rejects those things that are evil; for the sanctified ear tries words, and the sanctified heart tries actions, as the mouth tastes meat. And thus the Spirit of God leads and guides the meek in his way, agreeable to his promises; he enables them to understand the commands and counsels of his word, and rightly to apply them....
   The leading of the Spirit which God gives his children, which is peculiar to them, is that teaching them his statutes, and causing them to understand the way of his precepts, which the Psalmist so very often prays for, especially in the 119th Psalm; and not in giving of them new statutes, and new precepts. He graciously gives them eyes to see, and ears to hear, and hearts to understand; he causes them to understand the fear of the Lord..." Jonathan Edwards, Some Thoughts Concerning the Revival, pg. 434-437

[I'm aware that Edwards believed the gift of prophecy ceased with the closing of the NT canon, and part of his writing here is based on that perspective. I whole-heartedly agree with Edwards' concerns, and I am not the least bit surprised that false prophecy, and misuse of prophecy, was a cause of great harm in the Great Awakening. When the church accepts that prophecy can exist today, great errors and delusions can follow. (Then again, great errors and delusions come when prophecy is absent.) Nevertheless, though it is very "dangerous", it seems thoroughly Scriptural to me to not only expect, but also desire prophecy (1 Cor 14). So I reserve the right to heed Edwards' warnings, yet still desire the use of prophecy today in a God-fearing, biblical manner.]

"There is a world of difference between praying and laboring for a renewed mind that discerns how to apply God's Word, on the one hand, and the habit of asking God to give you new revelation of what to do, on the other hand. Divination does not require transformation. God's aim is a new mind, a new way of thinking and judging, not just new information. His aim is that we be transformed, sanctified, freed by the truth of his revealed Word (John 8:32; 17:17). So the second stage of God's will of command is the discerning application of the Scriptures to new situations in life by means of a renewed mind.
John Piper, "What Is the Will of God and How Do We Know It?", Sermon at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, MN, August 22, 2004, http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/2004/179_What_Is_the_Will_of_God_and_How_Do_We_Know_It/

"If God really speaks today (we begin to feel), then surely this is the way to know his will about jobs and mates and investments and purchases and travel plans. And pretty soon we tend to forsake the language of wisdom and insight and reason and persuasion, and instead use the language of "God told me to do this," and "God told me to do that" about almost everything.
  So what I want to do first with some examples is to show you that Paul himself, who believed so much in the gift of prophecy, did not live his own life by constant words from the Lord or encourage others to.
   For example, in Philippians 2:25 he said, "I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus". The word is "reckon". I have reckoned that it is necessary to send him. He did not get a revelation from the Lord. He "reckoned" with the needs and the circumstances and the principles of Scripture and made his decision, confident that it pleased the Lord.
   Another example is in 1 Corinthians 16:4 where he describes his plans like this: "If it seems advisable for me to go also, they will accompany me". The word for "advisable" is "fitting" or "worthy". Paul is asking about the fitness of the decision. He anticipates being led not by a prophetic revelation in this case, but by a sober assessment of what is fitting and advisable in view of the situation and what he knows of God.
   He advises others the same way. To the Corinthians who are embroiled in a dispute between some members he does not counsel them to ask for a prophecy; he says, "Can it be that there is no man among you wise enough to decide between members of the brotherhood?" (1 Cor. 6:5). He expect that spiritual wisdom should be used in the ordinary course of life to settle matters that arise.
   So we are alerted not to carry our enthusiasm for prophecy beyond limits. It is not supposed to become the usual way we make the hundreds of decisions that we must make each day.
   Why do you think this might be? I think the basic reason is this: if you live your life not on the basis of spiritual wisdom but on the basis of external revelations, you are not compelled to deal so deeply with the corruption of your own heart and mind. It is possible for a servant to hear the commands of his master and do them without really loving his master or being like him. But if the master refrains from telling the servant the details of what he wants done, and simply says, "Go now, and be a good representative for me in what you choose," then the servant is forced to consider what his master is really like and how deeply his own heart and mind conform to the heart and mind of the master.
   God wants conformity to his Son Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:29), not just external compliance with instructions. He wants us to see the way he sees and desire the way he desires and assess the way he assesses and be repelled by what repels him. And so he does not short circuit all this inner transformation of likeness to Christ when he calls us to do his will.
   We can see this most clearly in Romans 12:2. As Paul makes the great turn from the weighty theological matters of chapters 9-11 to the practical considerations of chapters 12-15 he says right at the outset that the basic means of doing the will of God is a mental ability to prove or confirm what is the will of God. "Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."
   This verse shows us at least three crucial things about confirming what the will of God is.
   First it shows us that the will of God must be "proved", that is, it must be examined and verified and embraced. "... that you may prove what the will of God is ..."
   The second thing it shows us is that this examining and verifying and accepting is done by the Christian mind: "Be transformed in the renewal of your mind, that you may prove ..." It is the mind of the Christian that does the proving of the will of God.
   Third, it shows us that for this to happen the mind must be renewed. "Be transformed in the renewal of your mind, that you may prove..." Ordinary human thinking will not be able to examine and verify and embrace the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
   So you can see, can't you, why God would not make prophecy the usual means of finding his will. If he did, it would minimize, or even evade, this utterly necessary transformation and renewal that is so crucial. God does not want mere external compliance to a set of rules or even a set of prophecies. He wants a people who are deeply, deeply different from the world in the kind of minds that they have. He wants us to have minds that think the way he thinks and see the way he sees and feel the way he feels so that they choose the way he chooses. Therefore he doesn't tell us to leave thinking behind and listen for messages. He tells us to be changed, be transformed, be metamorphosed in the way we think. "Be transformed in the renewal of your mind."
John Piper, "Compassion, Power, and the Kingdom of God: Why the Gift of Prophecy Is Not the Usual Way of Knowing God's Will", Sermon at Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, MN, April 1, 1990, http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/1990/717_Why_the_Gift_of_Prophecy_Is_Not_the_Usual_Way_of_Knowing_Gods_Will/