1 Corinthians 14:32-33 and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. For God is not a God of confusion but of peace. –ESV 

How many times do we find ourselves in doubt—questioning the will of God, our motives and even the path we are on? In a sense, these questions can be good. A person who never has doubts or at least serious consideration concerning some of these things probably does not have a healthy fear of God. But perhaps at times we take it too far and bog down in our consideration of details.

                              When Confusion Enters

The barometer I’ve come to use at times is whether my thoughts and considerations have descended into confusion. If they have, I try to pause my train-wrecked thoughts and start over, while renouncing the confusion that has settled in. The above referenced verses in Corinthians are concerning corporate discipline and orderly worship, but I believe it is obvious that it applies to our personal lives as well. If God is not a God of confusion but of peace, then I don’t think He will change His mind when He views our personal lives.

So we must consider. As I alluded earlier, there are two extremes. If we fall into the tendency to not consider the will of God at all, or our motives, or where we are going, we will not have peace. If God is not our Compass, we will have no stability and therefore we will have confusion. Perhaps God is our source of direction, but we view Him as legalistic and hard to please. If so, we will often become very technical in unraveling life’s questions. We fear repercussions if we miss the mark the first time around.

                             He Is A Good Shepherd

The truth is, Jesus longs to be our Shepherd. But He has no desire to be a tyrant. If that was His aim, He would get us into His kingdom by hook or by crook in order to rule over us harshly. After all, He is almighty. He could do it if He wanted to. But He draws and woos us into His kingdom. Longing to restore the fellowship we lost when Adam sinned. 

                                Obedience By Faith

That fellowship certainly hinges on unquestioning obedience on our part, based on our faith in Him. The deeper our surrender by faith, the greater our fellowship is with Him. But since our obedience is by faith, we will sometimes get it wrong. Faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen. If we are convicted of things not seen, we are simply going by impressions on our spirit by the Holy Spirit of God. The more mature we become, the more accurately we can interpret the nudging of the Holy Spirit. But on our way to maturity, we are bound to get it wrong sometimes. 

The best we can do, is simply to maintain a penitent heart before God, knowing He is not seeking to smite us down, but rather He longs to lift us up. He will not goad us, or drive us to confusion. If the answer is not clear, it means many times it is simply not time for us to know yet. We simply walk in faith on the path we are on. Or if we sense a nudging but aren’t sure, we can test it by faith, knowing God is not waiting to punish us if we are wrong. If our hearts are not proud, He will work it out for our good even if we get it wrong at times.