"12Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." (Philippians 2: 12-13)
He is working within us, both to will and to do what He wants us to do.
For us to understand this truth, however, we have to recognize that we have His life inside of us.
We are no longer living in and for ourselves, but rather we have received His life, Himself, in ourselves:
For years, I struggled with indecision and frustration in my life. If someone tells you that you are insane, that you are an alcoholic, that you are mentally and bodily different from your fellows, the natural response will be not to trust your own thinking, or your intuition about key matters.
That is exactly what happened to me.
Yaet at the same time, the AA Book, filled with distortions and falsehoods, gives the impression that men and women can rely on some esoteric spirit sense:
On awakening let us think about the twenty-four hours ahead. We consider our plans for the day. Before we begin, we ask God to direct our thinking, especially asking that it be divorced from self-pity, dishonest or self-seeking motives. Under these conditions we can employ our mental faculties with assurance, for after all God gave us brains to use. Our thought-life will be placed on a much higher plane when our thinking is cleared of wrong motives.
The Bible is quite clear -- we have the mind of Christ today (1 Corinthians 2: 16)
He has also granted us understanding to see Him as the Son of God:
"And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life." (1 John 5: 20)
We also have his clear and present will presented to us in 3 John 2:
"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth."
The will of God speaks of our living under His grace, not the esoteric micromanaging of discrete directions from doing one thing to another:
"5Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:
6In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.
7Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.
8Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; 9Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. 10By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." (Hebrews 10: 5-10)
The will of God is not something like an absolute plan laid out in concrete steps, which we may hit or miss.
God wants us to grow in grace and knowledge of Him (2 Peter 3: 18), and we find that our lives will produce the fruit which He wants to see.
He lives in us, He works through us, and He produces out of us the life and fruit which He wants us to have:
"1I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. 2Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. 3Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. 4Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. 5I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." (John 15: 1-5)
In thinking about our day we may face indecision. We may not be able to determine which course to take. Here we ask God for inspiration, an intuitive thought or a decision. We relax and take it easy. We don't struggle. We are often surprised how the right answers come after we have tried this for a while.
All of this spiritual direction talk sounds engaging, yet the nonsense (and sometimes outright cruelty) that I and many others have witnesses in "religious" people who claim to hear from God can cast nothing but healthy and wholesome skepticism on those who claim that every thought and direction comes from God.
The Bible is clear about how we can receive direction one what to do:
"And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful." (Colossians 3: 15)
The NIV is more clear about whose peace rules, or rather presides in our hearts:
"Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful."
What used to be the hunch or the occasional inspiration gradually becomes a working part of the mind. Being still inexperienced and having just made conscious contact with God, it is not probable that we are going to be inspired at all times. We might pay for this presumption in all sorts of absurd actions and ideas. Nevertheless, we find that our thinking will, as time passes, be more and more on the plane of inspiration. We come to rely upon it.
Today, I can level heavier criticism at the AA nonsense which has brought all too many into bondage in our times.
We do not have merely conscious contact with God Almighty. We have perfect access to Him through His Son:
"14Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 15For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4: 14-16)
We usually conclude the period of meditation with a prayer that we be shown all through the day what our next step is to be, that we be given whatever we need to take care of such problems. We ask especially for freedom from self-will, and are careful to make no request for ourselves only. We may ask for ourselves, however, if others will be helped. We are careful never to pray for our own selfish ends. Many of us have wasted a lot of time doing that and it doesn't work. You can easily see why.
The idea that we cannot pray for ourselves is an offense.
The first prayer in the Epistles mentions a specific prayer from Paul for himself:
"8First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. 9For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers; 10Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you. " (Romans 1: 8-10)
If circumstances warrant, we ask our wives or friends to join us in morning meditation. If we belong to a religious denomination which requires a definite morning devotion, we attend to that also. If not members of religious bodies, we sometimes select and memorize a few set prayers which emphasize the principles we have been discussing. There are many helpful books also. Suggestions about these may be obtained from one's priest, minister, or rabbi. Be quick to see where religious people are right. Make use of what they offer. (AA, pg 86-87)
Instead of memorizing a set of prayers, Jesus invites us to speak to Him and to His Father directly. Instead of vain repetitions, God invites us even to groan, for His Spirit intercedes on our behalf (Romans 8: 26-28)
Much of the AA directions, supposedly, in fact created more confusion and frustration in my life.
How was I supposed to turn my will and my life over to a higher power? What did that mean?
The fact is - such a phrase is meaningless to the core. The truth is that we do not turn over our lives to Christ Jesus, but rather He gives us His life:
"Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. 40And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life." (John 5: 39-40)
and then
"And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day." (John 6: 40)
and also
"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (1 John 5: 12)
When we have life, the power which He produces in us, plus the will and desire, flow through us, too.
No longer do we have to wake up and wonder what is God's will for us, as though each of us is distinct and separate from Him.
We are married to Christ, and just as married people can guess what the other will say or do, and feel what they are feeling, so too as we grow more aware of our standing and prized value before God, we can understand what He is directing us to do in the life that He has given us.