Following God's Direction

Have you ever heard this song by The Clash? Chapter 12 of Jan Johnson's book Enjoying the Presence of God touches on this very point. There are some people who think of prayer as if it were something out of "I Dream of Genie." Simply ask God for whatever you'd like in prayer, and God will magically provide. Still others want to use God like a traffic light, "Should I take this job? Should I buy this shirt or this car? Should I stay or should I go?" God is not a genie who will fulfill our inner most desires. A burning bush, and a pillar of fire/ploom of smoke are very rare forms of Godly direction. God is not a traffic light for direction in our lives. God has His own plan for salvation, and we need to dream dreams set in God's will for us. To do this means praying some pretty scary prayers. God, please show me the paths You would have me to walk, and I will do my best to walk those paths. Please God, show me your passion for my life that I might be filled with it also. These kinds of prayers are aimed at putting ourselves in the right point of view to hear God's call on our lives, but they require courage. Once these prayers are prayed faithfully, and our hearts become more focused on God's dreams there is no telling where God may lead you.