Prophetic Direction from God
In the Old Testament, there was a prophet named Samuel who was appointed by God to find the next king of Israel and anoint him as king. It was revealed to Samuel that the next king would be the son of a man named Jesse. Seven sons of Jesse passed in front of Samuel, but God gave no indication that any of them were to be anointed as king. This prompted Samuel to ask Jesse if he had any more sons. Jesse said that his youngest son was out in the field tending sheep. Of course this happened to be David whom they brought before Samuel. Samuel immediately knew from God that this was the one he was to anoint as king.
It was not apparent to anyone that David was God’s treasured choice to be king over his chosen people. Although God saw a king in David, it was hidden to everyone else. God had to reveal his plan to a highly regarded prophet in order to begin the process of moving David into the place that God had for him.
In David’s case, prophetic direction was part of God’s plan to move him into a position as a king. We may not have a prophet who comes to us to reveal an aspect of God’s purpose in our lives. If not, how can we move in the direction that God has for us?
Other Ways that God Leads
God can use a variety of ways to guide us into his purpose and calling for our lives. He’s given us his Holy Spirit and he can arrange for a combination of circumstances and the workings within our hearts to naturally move us into a certain direction. One way that some Life Coaches help people to recognize this is through what they refer to as “convergence experiences.” Convergence experiences help people uncover a logical way in which God uses circumstances, while also working within a person’s heart to guide them into what he has created them to do.
Convergence
Convergence simply refers to instances where things come together. Within the context of your life, you can ask key questions to see if there are parts of your life that converge, or come together in a way that equips you for a purpose or calling that God has for your life. Some of these questions are listed below. If you breeze through them without much thought, they won’t have much significance in providing any direction. If you are at a point in life where you are earnestly seeking God’s direction in life, give careful thought to the questions below and write down your answers.
Convergence Questions
- In what positive way(s) has God revealed himself to you again and again? Explain
- Do you have a lot of experience in a certain area of life? If so, describe and explain.
- What aspects of your background have helped to develop your knowledge and abilities?
- What aspects of your background and experience in life have given you the ability to understand and relate to others?
- Are there needs that you are naturally drawn too? List and describe them (think of what types of problems you like to solve and ways in which you like to help others).
- What activities do you succeed at most? What type of circumstances have led to you success?
- What types of things are you good at that have caused others to confirm that you are good at them?
- Is there an inner knowing in regard to a purpose that you feel you have in life?
- What gives you fulfillment and delight?
After answering the questions, do you see a theme where some of the same things come up again and again? The more this is true, the more it is an example of various aspects of your life converging together to form a theme. A theme is a possible indicator that God is leading you, or at least that he can use you in a certain area of life. Since God is God, he can lead you however he wants, and he may choose to lead you into an unlikely area of life that does not seem to fit a convergence theme that matches your background, abilities, and interests. However, it doesn’t hurt to look at some likely ways in which God could use you, and this is the purpose of answering the convergence questions.
Further Teaching on Convergence
An excellent teacher and motivator on the subject of convergence is Lance Wallnau. Lance provides some great teaching on this subject which you can watch on the videos as you proceed down this page. The two main things that Lance emphasizes are the union between what you love doing, and what you are good at. If you can find a role in life that allows this to happen, then your passion and gifting will converge together to enable you to be much more effective at what you are doing than if you working in an area where you lack either passion or ability. I encourage you take some time to watch the videos as they are inspiring and will provide some clarity for your own life.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyEJw0nOBk4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tb18CYbfCA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1ure2x_cnY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uQ0mQhaK-s
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