What happens when your life is repeatedly moving into a different direction than where you want it to be—when you expect to find answers and more questions appear? Have you ever wished you could see into the future and be able to navigate through life’s ups and downs?

As human beings, we constantly make plans and try to affect the outcome of our lives for the best. We are always trying to come up with the right solutions for our problems and seeking answers. As long as humans have been here, this has been the case. It is easy to become distracted by our own wants, desires and ambitions. It is easy to get caught up in concentrating on ourselves while missing the fact that our lives hold such importance for all of us.

Do we believe that God the Father and Jesus Christ have seen us before time began? Do we accept that the words we read in our Bibles are true? If so, then we need to read and come to fully understand and put into practice what we claim to believe. First we read in Ephesians 2:10 that we are “created in Jesus Christ…” We have been given a new hold on life (also note 2 Corinthians 5:17-18). But this verse doesn’t just stop there. It continues: “… for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” The primary object here is that we should be living our lives in a holy way. This is explained so many times. Romans 6:4 tells us that we are called to “newness of life.” Ephesians 1:4 says that we have been chosen “before the foundation of the world” to be “holy and without blame.” God prepares beforehand for each of us particular good works, and the time and way which He sees best. By His providence, God brings about opportunities for good works, and makes us ready for their performance (John 15:16; 2 Timothy 2:21). He wants us to walk in them—not to “be saved” by them. Works do not justify, but a just man works (Galatians 5:22-25).

So how do we accomplish this goal, when life is throwing rocks at us left and right—when everything seems stacked against us? Does it seem then that God really cares? Does He answer us at all?

There can only be one answer!

God dares us to do something in Malachi 3:10. This passage involves the aspect of tithing. Also think about other areas of our lives. The principle of this Scripture applies in so many ways. God says: “… try Me NOW in this.” Don’t wait until it is convenient. Try it out and see if it works, if I won’t bless you for tithing. What if we took this challenge and applied it to bible study; prayer; meditation; helping out at Church services; volunteering time and effort to help promote the Word of God; in any situation, really.

These are ALL areas where we can apply this challenge. God wants to see the character that develops in us as we go through trials, while applying and being obedient to His rules and laws. If we do this, then God tells us in 2 Corinthians 9:8 that if we have good works then He can and will bless us. But if we think that we will be blessed at all times without having to grow spiritually, then there is still much to learn.

James 4:17 equates the good or evil that we do with the life that we choose to live. Notice, it says that everyone should seek the Lord’s Will. However, this is not just a one-time occurrence. Rather, it applies consistently, as it does with tithing or any of the above-mentioned activities. We don’t pray just one time for something and when nothing happens decide that we stop praying because God didn’t answer. Instead, it is just the opposite. We are commanded to pray “always” (Ephesians 6:18) and “without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). If we fail to study God’s Word and pray for His help, how can He answer? Do we see the waterfall effect if we start failing in one area?

Consistency has to be our key—consistency in doing the right thing. We must have consistency in faith that God knows what is best for our individual situations; knowing that He will allow tests and trials to see where we stand in respect to our desire to have a relationship with Him. How can we expect God to answer if we half-heartedly go through the steps and motions of bible study and prayer? Psalm 23 lays out David’s deep respect and love for God and his relationship with God. Notice in this chapter the day-to-day reliance David had on God. He equated EVERYTHING as coming from God. He constantly was evaluating his life and seeking God’s Will in everything he did. He did this so he could come to the point where he would be able to see more clearly God’s point of view on things. And for this, God loved David dearly.

This is the type of reliance we need to establish in our relationship with God if we want to understand our lives better and where we are headed. Without this type of reliance and consistency on our part, we will be lost as to where we are on a daily basis. We will lose sight of what it is that God is trying to accomplish with each of us.

Try God! Put Him first in everything—in prayer, in thought, in deed and in action. If we start developing this mindset in our lives, dramatic changes in our thoughts and attitudes will occur, and God will be able to use us more easily because we seek His Will.

In a world full of distractions and endless ways to spend our time and energy, how do we use the time that we have each day? And even more importantly, how do we feel at the end of a day? Do we find ourselves fulfilled from ALL of our engagements? We touch so many people throughout a single day that we don’t always realize how we are impacting others. Colossians 3:23-24 points out that whatever we are doing, we are to do it “heartily” or with our entire heart. We are to be pouring out ourselves into what we do. And the amazing thing is that if we are doing this, God gives us the knowledge and understanding that we need to accomplish our tasks. But the important caveat is that we do it with our entire heart. If we half-heartedly approach every day, our jobs, people, anything really, how can we be fulfilled? How can we fill up others if we are half-hearted? How can we serve joyfully? Ephesians 6:6-8 admonishes us to serve “from the heart”—with good will. There is no room for back-biting, hate, ill-will, or anything negative.

How hard is it though to not complain when things go wrong? When we think that things should be different than what they are? When we think we are being treated unfairly or unkindly? How do we react? We would do better to keep in mind the words Solomon wrote down for us in Ecclesiastes 7:20-22. We must be careful with the attitudes and the thoughts that we allow ourselves to have. We must come to rely on God more and more for wisdom and understanding in ALL matters.

James 4:7-9 gives us the right ideas in this regard. We need to be submitting ourselves to God to fully understand how we can fulfill our days in the right ways. In verses 13-17, James goes on to admonish us that in the scheme of things, our lives are over so quickly. All our strivings and goals are in vain if they are not rightly ordained by God. He indeed sets our courses. When we go wrong and need adjustment, He makes corrections, as long as we are willing to accept them and get back on the right track.

So let us ask ourselves these questions:

How fulfilled do we find ourselves at the end of each day?

How willing are we to seek God and allow Him to lead?

As we approach the Passover, what can we take away from this short time we have left in examining ourselves? Ephesians 5:16 tells us that we should be “redeeming the time” by making the BEST use of our time, “because the days are evil.”

David had the right approach in Psalm 127:2. Even though our work may be heavy and burdensome, when we do it with God’s Will in mind, seeking what He wants, then we can go to bed at the end of the day and feel fulfilled because God will give us good rest. And He will recharge us for our continual fight each and every day. Psalm 90:12 says: “So teach us to number our days That we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Let us allow Godly wisdom and understanding fill us up each day so that we may feel fulfilled and others may see that and be encouraged to follow our example.