Do you really need God to tell you what to do about that person you like? Are you confused about your living situation, your career, or a family issue? When God seems silent and you just don’t know what to do, what does the Bible instruct?
Here are 4 biblical things you can do when you need an answer from God.
1. Don’t Overlook What God Has Already Said Because You Are Focusing So Much on the Unknowns
For example, perhaps you are asking God if you and this person will get married one day. You’ve fasted, you’ve prayed, you’ve searched the Scriptures for an answer, but no matter what you try, you are still confused and unclear on whether or not this person is your future spouse.
Perhaps, however, God has shown you that you two will not date right now. Perhaps he’s shown you that this person is currently interested in someone else. Has God told you this person is not the one? No, God hasn’t specifically answered that question. But he has shown you that you two are not going to date anytime soon.
Sometimes it feels like God has not answered you because you are asking the wrong questions. When you ask the right questions, you will then realize God has already sent his answer.
Psalm 25:9 states, “He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.” There is a nearness to this statement. He teaches the humble the next right thing to do. He doesn’t always reveal the distant future to the humble.
The point is, instead of focusing on what you don’t know, focus more on what you do know. Oftentimes you will then realize you already have the answer you need to make the next choice God wants you to make in your life.
2. When You Need an Answer from God, Saturate Your Mind and Heart in God’s Truth
Imagine there were two different people who were both sent out into the wilderness. They were both dropped off in an unknown location that they had never been to before. On the way there, they were both blindfolded. The only difference is that before they were dropped off, one of these people was allowed to study a map. This person couldn’t take the map with them, but this person was allowed to study it for hours before they were dropped off. This person was encouraged to look at the big mountains and rivers on the map so that they could recognize these land markers in real life and find their bearings. Who do you think has a better chance of finding their way out of the wilderness? The person who studied the map or the person who didn’t?
In much the same way, when you read God’s word and saturate your mind in his truth, you will have a greater ability to know which way to go when you enter into unknown situations. Psalm 25:4-5 states, “Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.”
3. When You Need an Answer from God, Repent of Any Sins that May Be Hindering You from Hearing God Properly
Sin can act like earplugs. Sometimes God is sending the answer but we can’t hear it due to our rebellion.
For example, if you are idolizing a relationship, you will struggle to hear God say “no” when you desperately crave a “yes” about this person. Additionally, even if God is saying “yes,” you will struggle to receive this answer because deep down you know you are unwilling to hear a “no.” To properly receive the answer God is sending about this relationship, you must first repent of idolatry so your heart is free to truly obey the Lord no matter what he does or does not say.
Psalm 25:11-12 says, “For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great. Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.”
4. When You Don’t Have a Clear Answer but You Must Make a Decision, Just Do Your Best and Trust God to Sovereignly Work His Will
There are times in life where you won’t know exactly what you should do but you will need to do something. In moments like these, we must remind ourselves of God’s sovereign power to bring about his will (Genesis 39:23).
If you prayed (Psalm 25:1), consulted the word (Psalm 25:10), repented of known sins (Psalm 25:21), but you still don’t know exactly what God is saying, then just do your best and allow God to create the results he wants to create.
As 2 Timothy 2:15 instructs, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”
Here’s a related article where I cover 5 more things you can do when you need an answer from God: How to Get an Answer from God
