Alpha Course, How Does God Guide Us

Tonight we reach the halfway mark in the Alpha Course. Hopefully we've all felt challenged and moved by what has been said through this course, I know I have. And don't forget, tonight we'll be having a special Spaghetti Dinner as part of the course.

While some might be excited about dinner, the real substance tonight comes from the material. As with each week, this message from Nicky provides plenty of food for thought and really helped me reflect on my own life. Nicky has been very purposeful in putting this course together, with each week building on the next. In this section of the course (week's 5 through 7), the focus has really been on discipleship and how that can help guide the path of our lives.

This is an interesting companion to the Oxygen Series — and not something we planned really. But we've had weeks focus on prayer, the Bible, and now God's guidance in Alpha at the same time Graham's been taking about getting Oxygen into our lives and, in the case of last week, Soul Care. These concepts are all linked, and for those who've been spending time trying to put our learning into practice, you've probably seen the fruits of that effort. I know for me using the prayer journal at night and going through the Our Daily Bread devotional in the morning has provided a sense of peace and clarity. And that is some of the focus of tonight's lesson.

Nicky lays out five ways God guides us — through Scripture, through the Holy Spirit, through common sense, through the counsel of trusted friends, and through signs in our lives. Often, for me, it takes a convergence of those things to really drive home the message. Sometimes that's because our own desires and will gets in the way.

Proverbs 16:9 says, "In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps." Sometimes it takes us a while to realize that. I think there are two aspects of how the Lord speaks that most grabbed me — common sense and signs. Nicky offers a quote from John Stott, who said, "God's promises of guidance were not given to save us the problem of thinking." But, too often, I think we get caught up in waiting for the Lord to spell things out for us in a concrete way and we miss the signs he's already sending us, or miss following the voice in our heads that is directing us.

One of my favorite speakers/writers is Donald Miller. By chance, on Monday I was revisiting one of his messages that I have on podcast. I couldn't help but think today, while I was reviewing material for tonight's Alpha, that it was God guiding me to the message. In the message, Miller talks about the way we commonly approach God as Christians — sitting back and waiting for him to tell us specifically what we are to do. But that's not necessarily how God works. Sure, if there's something he needs you to do, he might speak through a burning bush. It certainly got Moses' attention. But, for most of us, the guidance comes in more subtle ways.

Nicky talks in this session about how he realized God was calling him to the ministry. That couldn't help but remind me of my own story. Mine was really a confluence of a lot of these different methods of guidance.

About two years ago, I was struggling. I had built a career in journalism — which is one of my passions — and I thought I had done some good work. But it wasn't fulfilling me the way I expected. The only times I felt really fulfilled were in the work I was doing at Highlands Church. That was something I really had begun to think about and take seriously. I was beginning to look at the future and, for the first time, was uncertain I was on the right path.

I pondered and prayed about a number of different options. Then I started looking into going back to school, even considering Seminary. I shared these feelings with close family and a few close friends at Highlands who I knew were similarly praying for me to get the answers I sought.

At the same time, I was plagued by doubts. I didn't really think I had any skills to offer the ministry, after all I was a writer and a decent administrator and details guy, but I'm also an introvert who doesn't really like to stand in front of big crowds. (I know that last part might seem strange to you who have attended Alpha or one of my classes, but the truth is I still get terrified every time I have to speak in public. Whatever you get out of listening to me is truly all the Lord working through me).

So I was battling this nagging feeling that I needed to redirect my efforts and this overwhelming self doubt. It was around this time two years ago that I had the chance to travel with Pastor Graham to a denominational conference in Atlanta. In addition to being at this conference and spending time with Graham (with whom I'd shared my struggle and sought guidance), I had a chance to speak with a number of pastors from around the country. I thought I was making the trip to support Graham, but I soon realized God was using as a time to speak to me.

A month earlier, at a leadership retreat, we had talked about all the different kinds of jobs there were in ministry and some of the areas we needed. Among them was an administrator/manager position. When we were talking about it, I realized that was not only some of what I did as part of my job, it was what I liked to do. But still, I filed it away and didn't really think about it again.

Not until I was in Atlanta. That kind of need was again a topic of discussion in this assemblage of pastors, and soon I finally realized what God was trying to tell me (I guess I'm think this way). I had spent so much time focusing on what I wasn't gifted to do, that I never considered what I was gifted to do.

Following that trip, I enrolled in a Master's program to increase my skills in that arena and determined that I wanted to pursue a career in church administration. It wasn't two months later that a position opened here, I applied, and was hired. None of that is a coincidence.

God doesn't always want to radically alter someone's life in the same way, but he speaks to us in a lot of ways. We just have to be open enough to hear it. And when you do, it brings you a peace and joy that can only come from the Lord.