Need Realignment? | How to Align Your Heart with God’s Will
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At the beginning of the year, month, week, or even day, you likely have a mind and heart set on God. Perhaps you start each morning with time in His Word or set goals at the beginning of the year and month. However, even with the best intentions, your mind can be distracted, and your plans get off course. You are thrown off by a glitch in your schedule. Life’s circumstances change. You need realignment. You need to align your heart with God’s will.
At the same time, you must know that aligning your heart with God’s will is a process—not a one-and-done action. It takes discipline, devotion, and a deep love for the things He loves. And there is no room for condemnation.
Know God’s Heart and Character
Furthermore, KNOW, SEE, and FEEL the truth of God’s character. He is patient with you. He gently guides you with His loving arm, as a shepherd does with his sheep.
- “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”—John 10:11
He understands that life gets heavy and we are weak.
- “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.”—Hebrews 4:15
So then, avoid getting caught in the schemes of the enemy. He lies to you and tries to put guilt, shame, and disappointment upon you. Take power and authority over the spirits of guilt, shame, and disappointment and command them to go, in Yeshua’s name. They must leave!
- “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”—James 4:7
What Does God Call You to Do?
Whenever you feel out of alignment or have difficulty knowing what steps He wants you to take, start by honestly evaluating where you are with what you know He wants you to do…
God’s Will | 7 Desires He Has for You
- God wants you to live holy.
- “…because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’”—1 Peter 1:16
- “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:”—Hebrews 12:14
- God wants you to tell others about Him.
- “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.’“—Mark 16:15
- “That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all Your wondrous works.”—Psalm 26:7
- God wants you to worship.
- “‘God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.’”—John 4:24
- “Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; come before His presence with singing.”—Psalm 100:1-2
- God wants you to pray continuously.
- “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”—1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
“praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints…”—Ephesians 6:18
- God wants you to be in His Word.
- “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”—Colossians 3:16
- “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”—Joshua 1:8
- God wants you to reveal and experience His love.
- “So he answered and said, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’”—Luke 10:27
- “Let all that you do be done with love.”—1 Corinthians 16:14
- God wants you to serve others.
- “As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”—1 Peter 4:10
- “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”—Galatians 5:13
Why are these things God’s will? Because they draw you into His presence, and there you will find perfect peace as you know, see, and feel the blessings He has for you.
Humbly coming before God with these verses allows Him to align your heart with His. Do not believe the lie that tells you that you are condemned if one of these areas is off. There is no condemnation in Christ! Instead, openly accept and acknowledge the shortcomings through repentant prayer, asking Him to cleanse and align your heart—your mind, will, and emotions.
Practical Steps
After evaluating the above points with the Lord, consider these five practical steps that can align your heart with God’s will.
Journal the lies and combat them with the truth.
If you haven’t written down the lies you hear and the truth of God’s Word that combats that lie, try it! It does not have to be a perfect journal entry. Rather, it is more of a mental note that reminds you that the lie is, in fact, a lie, and you don’t have to come into agreement with it. Additionally, the verse or passage to combat the lie can be written right beside it so you can declare it at that moment or when the lie seems to be a resounding voice that needs to be silenced in the Courts of Heaven.
- “Then the Lord answered me and said: ‘Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.’”—Habakkuk 2:2
Review your goals.
If you haven’t gotten the chance yet, take a moment now to download our Goals to Grow Quarterly Check-In and establish or evaluate goals to align your heart. This is not meant to be a performance-based exercise. It is intended to keep your mind focused so that it keeps you on the path God has revealed for your life. Review the goals throughout the year with the Lord. Ask Him to reveal where you need realignment.
- “But you, be strong and do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded!”—2 Chronicles 15:7
Trust in His ways.
This seems simple enough, but it is an area where many of us struggle. Trust is more than simply proclaiming or waiting. It is actively seeking God’s character. He is a covenant-keeping God. He cannot lie; therefore, you can trust Him. He has not forgotten about you, He hears your cry, and He will restore in His perfect timing.
- “‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the Lord. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.’”—Isaiah 55:8-9
When you don’t know what to do, A.C.T.
Use the teaching principle of A.C.T. (Apply, Change, and Transform) to take action. Sometimes, realigning your heart starts with taking a small step and trusting that God will take the big one. He gives you free will and asks you to use your talents to glorify Him. Simply start. Yes, there is a time to wait upon the Lord, but be careful not to use that as an excuse to do nothing. Again, simply start stepping, then listen carefully as He continues to reveal His will.
- “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.”—James 1:22-24
Be sensitive to the Spirit’s voice.
As mentioned above, the Lord gives you free will. He wants to partner with and guide you as you come together as one with Him. When you take that first step (mentioned above), He will uncover the next, the next, and so on. When you are sensitive to His voice, you can trust that He will lovingly guide you back when you step off the path. His heart is for you to know Him as your Good Shepherd. Wash your mind with the truth of the Word, and then you will be able to test and prove His perfect will—it’s a process. And Yeshua’s prayer is that you are one in the Triune God.
- “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me”—John 17:20-21
The Result of Realignment
Do you need to be encouraged? Know that when you align your heart with God’s will, the result is excellent, good, pure, and peaceful…
“May He grant you according to your heart’s desire,
and fulfill all your purpose.”—Psalm 20:4