Understanding the Will of God

From time to time in the history, when God wants something done, He reveals His will to whomever He picks for the job at hand in no uncertain terms. The Bible records many such stories. Moses was a happy man in the desert, happily married to a beautiful daughter of a Midian high priest, tending sheep in and around the foot of the mountains in the desert. Then one day it happened. Out of the burning bush, a voice called him and told him to go back to Egypt and free His people. What happened after that is a common knowledge to both the Jews and Christians. Peter and Andrew were fishermen. They were working all night with little luck. They were giving up and cleaning their nets when Jesus showed up and told them to launch the boat out into the deeper part of the lake and cast their net. To their shock, they caught more fish than they ever dreamt of catching in their wildest dreams. At that point, Peter realized that the man was no ordinary man. So he told Him, “Go away Lord, I am a sinful man.”Jesus told him not to worry about it and He told them to follow Him instead. Saul of Tarsus was on the way to Damascus on a mission with not so good intention. And then out of the blue, Lord just appeared as a light brighter than the sun and knocked him down from his high horse, turned him round and round a few times spiritually, and then told him to go to the Gentiles and preach His gospel among them. Similarly, St. Francis of Assisi, while praying before a Crucifix, heard a voice telling him to repair His house. In such cases, these individuals did not have any trouble in discerning the will of God; because He did it for them in no subtle terms. What about the rest of us who have not been told clearly as to what He wills us to do or be in our lives? I often find myself wondering if I am walking in the general direction in which God wants me to walk or I am way off by a 180° margin of error. How does one discern His will with absolute certainty? Must one always take a leap of faith and say to oneself without a shade of doubt, “This is it. This is what God wants me to be?” Or is it that His will is already preprogrammed in our mind, so we instinctively act and do things according to His will and design? It is hard to say. It is impossible to read God’s mind. Advice like ‘Ask Him in prayer to reveal His will’ is good. But one still has to listen to one’s own ‘inner voice’ during the prayer. What if ‘the inner’ voice is always in the habit of saying ‘No’ to all the questions one puts in prayer? Is there any hope left then?
Recently, I have been reading some writings about St. Francis of Assisi and St. John of the Cross. These two great saints had very different approaches to understanding God’s Will.
First, the St. Francis way: here, he is talking to his companions, “After discarding every desire of your heart, whatever that is left in your heart would be those you hate the most. Doing what you hate the most with perfect charity is the perfect will of God.” That is tough, even for Francis himself. But he did it!
Second, the St. John way: Desires of your heart are by the will of God. He puts these desires in your heart and He desires to fulfill them for His glory. These views will, perhaps, make it easier for many in their quest for the Will of God.
As for me, I neither know how to read God’s mind nor discern His Will. So I place my trust in Him and do whatever I need to do. Perhaps I am wrong; but it is my belief that as long as one puts oneself within the general vicinity of God’s grace, He always finds a way to bring you where He wants you to be; even if you were way off by 180° margin of error.