What's His Will?

By Pastor Dan Hickling

“Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. And they came and drew water, and they filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. Then the shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock. When they came to Reuel their father, he said, ‘How is it that you have come so soon today?’ And they said, ‘An Egyptian delivered us from the hand of the shepherds, and he also drew enough water for us and watered the flock.’ So he said to his daughters, ‘And where is he? Why is it that you have left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.’ Then Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses. And she bore him a son. He called his name Gershom, for he said, ‘I have been a stranger in a foreign land.’”—Exodus 2:16–22 (NKJV)

We now come to an installment in Moses’ life that doesn’t always grab a lot of headlines. Here, he’s a fugitive and his flight brings him to Midian, which seemed beyond striking distance of his Egyptian past. Undoubtedly parched and exhausted from his travels, he stops at a well along the way, which is being drawn from by seven daughters of the local priest. As they begin to water their flocks, they’re forced away by some shepherds. Moses sees all of this unfold, and what he does next not only reveals his inmost character but also determines the trajectory of his life for the next forty years.

God wired Moses to respond to injustice. As the future deliverer of the children of Israel, this would be an essential part of his character. When Moses witnessed something wrong happening, he didn’t sit still. He rose up in Egypt when he saw a Hebrew slave being abused by an Egyptian, and he reacted here as the shepherds started to bully these women. Moses used his might to drive the shepherds off.

We all go through life grappling with a certain mystery (God’s will for our lives) to one degree or another. God does have a specific will and purpose for our lives (Romans 12:2) and a particular calling He desires to accomplish in every one of us (Ephesians 2:10; Philippians 1:6). But the big question is, “How does one discover what God’s purposed will and individual calling for their life is?”

Several factors play a part in making this clear to us. Generally speaking, we get a lot of God’s will for our lives straight from the Bible. His Word gives us the guardrails and guidance we need to know what He does and doesn’t want for any believer in Christ. Beyond that, His Spirit also speaks to us when it comes to those specific things that aren’t as black and white in Scripture. God also uses the wise counsel of other people and the practical circumstances of life to lead us in His will. He also uses something hiding in plain sight, as we see with Moses here—He uses who we are!

Psalm 139:14 tells us that each of us has been wonderfully created by God, Himself. That means the traits unique to us are there by divine design. And because God knows the end from the beginning, those traits are placed there in order to accomplish the greater life’s goal that He’s planned for us. Who we are is a clue as to what the Lord wants to do with us. We see it here with Moses, and we can see it in ourselves if we look close enough.

As you contemplate God’s calling on your life, consider who He created you to be. Then ask Him to help you connect the dots between who you are and what He desires to do through you.

Pause: What does Moses’ reaction in this passage reveal about his ultimate calling?

Practice: Today, spend some time thinking about what makes you unique and how might God use this to clarify His calling on your life. Consider your specific gifts, passions, hobbies, and interests. Think about where He has positioned you and who He’s placed in your life.

Pray: Father, I desire to know Your good and perfect will for my life. Please reveal what it is to me in a way that is specific and personal. Amen.