Maybe that 5-40% lack of clarity in outcome is the faith step God is asking you to take?
"Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”" Daniel 3:16-18
Listening to God encourages us to move in faith sometimes, without 100% certainty. In Next Generation Leader, Andy Stanley mentions the idea of a decision quotient. The idea is that we make many of our daily decisions without a 100% certainty. Functionally, some of us make our decisions being 60% sure while others may be closer to 95%. Andy Stanley then asks Christians to consider that they generally follow God's calling based off a similar certainty rather than waiting or requiring for God to give them 100% confirmation before they move. Often, God has already given people enough confirmation through the Bible and Christian counsel to have a beginning idea of what to do or maybe at least what NOT to do.
As Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego reply to the king, they show they're acting in faith even without complete certainty of the outcome. Here's the crazy thing, they got their 100% confirmation on the back end, in the fire, by stepping out with a 10-90% idea of the outcome and 100% trust in God's ability to be in control whatever happened. Maybe that 5-40% lack of clarity is the faith step God is asking you to trust Him to step forward?
If you already have a fairly normal confidence about your decision, but not a 100% certainty, maybe you already have more than enough confirmation to move forward and trust God also has the ability to close doors or help change directions as He desires you move off course.
So, are you willing to say 'yes' to God even if He doesn't fill you in on all the details? If your priority is to glorify Him, your 'yes' covers the remaining factor.
Originally published on September 21, 2020 as Week 3 of the Listening to God Series on Quest.
