God's Will

This is a long excerpt from my devotional, Our Journey, but I thinks it's incredibly important as I/we look ahead to the new year before me/us:

"I remember asking questions about God's will as a college student - persistent, distracting questions about ministry and direction and even a lifetime partner.  I was confused about what to do and where to get answers.  I sincerely wanted to do God's will, but I was not sure how to discover it.  People often gave conflicting answers and pious platitudes.  'Pray and wait, brother; God will show you,' as if God's will could only be found by putting my motor in neutral.  'Let go and let God, young man,' as if God's will could only be found by abandoning my search for it.  I became very discouraged in my attempts to locate this elusive thing called 'THE WILL OF GOD.'

"Are you at a place like that?  Maybe you want to move out of state, but you're not sure if it's God's will.  Perhaps you have been offered a new position but don't want to make a career move until you are certain that God is behind it.  Are you struggling with a difficult relationship and desperately need to know whether God wants you to walk away?  Everywhere people are wrestling with the same kinds of questions, and often it comes down to this:  'How can I know God's will for my life?'

"This may come as a surprise to you, but the Bible doesn't spend a lot of time on that stuff.  As I've said before, God's will is 98% about who you are.  God's focus isn't so much on the externals; He wants to change the inner you.  He says, 'If I can change you into the person I want you to be, you'll know where you're supposed to go, where you're supposed to work, and who you're supposed to marry.'  Paul said it plainly:  'For this is the will of God, your sanctification' (1 Thessalonians 4:3)."