Annoying Christianisms and Discerning God's Will

There are several “Christianisms” – Christian jargon, or phrases referencing bible verses that you have to be in on to understand, that just annoy the heck out of me. For example, “put a hedge of protection” just drives me crazy. Half the people who say it are probably just repeating what they heard someone else say, and haven’t a clue about the verses it references or what it means, much less how it might apply today. They say it with a blithe indifference to what Jesus said – “in this world you WILL have trouble” – and a complete lack of understanding that we should not expect or want a trouble-free life. I’ve only heard it used appropriately once in the last decade.

Another one – wanting to do something and asking God to “shut doors” if it is not His will. There’s a case to be made to ask God to open a door – you’re waiting on confirmation of His will before you make a move. But proceeding with what you want to do anyway, and hoping God will stop you sounds like a cop out to me. There are many examples of why this is unbiblical. Here’s one – the Israelites wanted a king. God said, “Bad idea, kids. Trust me on this. I’m all you need.” They insisted and God finally said, “Okay, you can have what you want but I’m telling you, you’re not gonna like it.” And, lo and behold, they didn’t like it. It caused no end of trouble.

This next one drives a friend of mine up a wall. “Putting out a fleece” in order to determine God’s will. Her gripe with that, of course, is that people don’t ask for a miraculous sign, or try to use it for questions that are ridiculous to begin with. “Okay, God. If the sun rises tomorrow, I’ll know that means you’re giving me the go ahead to buy some lottery tickets.” Go back and read how Gideon really used it to confirm God’s will – he asked for the impossible, not once but twice. (The second time he reversed his request.) No possible way was that a natural occurrence or a coincidence.

Why do I care about this stuff at this particular point in time? Because something I have wanted for many years just entered the realm of possibility. I’ve wanted it with my flesh, without regard to what God’s will was. Suddenly The Man does a 180 and agrees, because he’s pretty darn sure he heard from God about it. But over the years, I’ve also wised up a bit – enough to learn that if God doesn’t want it, I don’t either. So I’ve “put out a fleece,” and asked for the impossible as a confirmation that this is really God’s will. I’ve never done it before – asking God for deliverance from the hangover while you miserably clutch the toilet doesn’t count, especially because I wasn’t saved then anyway . I’m praying for a very clear answer. If the miraculous occurs, I’ll let you know.