God’s Will vs. Our Own Will — Part 1

The View From Above: Thoughts To Help With Everyday Life

September 8, 2026

Pastor Paul Stephens

God’s Will vs. Our Own Will — Part 1

Ours can be pretty forceful, and we can be stubborn and very un-surrendered to God’s will.

Ultimately, all that is going to matter when all is said and done, when we stand before God…did we do what we knew to be God’s will for our lives or not?

I’ve heard and seen it many times before. We call our will God’s will, and we claim to have prayed…

Oh yes! God spoke to me, told me…opened a door in this direction or that.

Isn’t it funny how God’s will many times is what we want to do anyway?

It’s a very dangerous game to play.

Sometimes God’s will may be easy, and it may be what we want…but other times it takes us in directions other than what we want for our lives.

I was inspired about all this reading the book of Jonah. God had a will for his life…the problem? He didn’t like it and chose to do otherwise, thinking, who’s gonna know? I can do what I want, and it’s gonna be okay.

Well, he tried that, and look what happened!

Jonah 1:1–2

“Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.’”

Now remember, this isn’t some rogue sinner, pagan, or heathen…this is God’s prophet, who must have had a track record of obedience, or God wouldn’t have asked him to go on this most important of missions…to save a city and a people.

Well, we all know what Jonah did:

Jonah 1:3

“But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.”

How many times have we “arose to flee”?

Probably more than once.

Not everything God has for our lives lands the way God wants. He’s looking for surrender and obedience. He’s looking for those who love Him to do His will.

Well, Jonah had other ideas.

The most telling words in the above verse: He fled, “…from the presence of the Lord…”

The most powerful form of God’s presence in our lives is when we are obeying Him.

God didn’t flee from Jonah…Jonah fled from Him.

God didn’t give up…we know what happened. A few nights in the belly of a great fish and Jonah decided it’s best to obey God.

And you know what? God is gracious and forgiving, and He gave Jonah another opportunity to align his life with God’s will.

Jonah 3:1–2

“Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you.’”

There’s too much at stake for God to give up on Jonah doing His will.

Could God have gotten someone else? That’s an irrelevant question…He wanted Jonah, and so God persisted in getting him to surrender.

That, of course, is the best position for our lives.

Surrender before we have to get swallowed up by a great fish. Of course, I mean that metaphorically.

The point being…God has a plan and a will. Sometimes it’s easy for Him to channel us in the direction He wants us to go…and sometimes not so much.

The will of God can be hard, challenging, filled with uncertainty…nevertheless, if it is what God wants, we surrender.

This is what you should be praying about:

God, I don’t want a stubborn and disobedient spirit. I want a heart that readily surrenders to Your will.

So then, how do I know what God’s will is?

That is for tomorrow’s View From Above.

Stay tuned!