WHEN GOD DOESN'T ANSWER
Micah Smith
Today's Scripture: “These things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:10-11, ESV
Theme: The Spirit doesn't always give us specific answers but transforms how we understand God's character and trust His faithfulness.
THE DECISION THAT WOULDN'T DECIDE ITSELF
Earlier this year, I was staring down what looked like a no-brainer career move. Better pay, bigger role, more responsibility, larger organization—every checkbox marked. I did everything right: prayed about it, searched Scripture (turns out there aren't many explicit Bible stories about switching employers), sought counsel from trusted people in my life, and made exhaustive pros-and-cons lists. But the clarity I was desperate for never came. It was like praying into a void and hearing nothing back.
Around that same time, my dad was turning 70, so I took him to NYC to celebrate. I figured a change of scenery might help—maybe God speaks louder in Manhattan? Maybe God would whisper/shout over the incessant honking? What I didn't expect was that the breakthrough wouldn't come from finally hearing God's voice, but from learning to think differently.
THE APPLE OR THE ORANGE
We were walking through the city when I confessed my frustration to my dad. "I've done everything I'm supposed to do, and I still don't know what God wants me to do."
He asked me a simple question: "If you had an apple for lunch instead of an orange, does that matter for the will of God and humanity?"
I laughed. "Probably not" – suspecting he was about to Mr. Miyagi me.
"So if you took the 'wrong' option here, does that mean God is done with you and His plans to redeem humanity are now messed up?"
I paused. "Probably not."
He continued, "One of the greatest things about our relationship with our Creator is our own free will. God gives us the ability to make decisions—some have huge impacts; some God will use either way for His glory. And if this opportunity was really meant to be, as you continue to seek God, He'll make something happen. Maybe the lack of exact clarity isn't 'God doesn't care about me' so much as 'God loves me either way and trusts me to make decisions—decisions He can use for His glory.'"
That conversation shifted everything. Paul writes that the Spirit reveals things to us—but what if what's being revealed isn't always a specific answer but a transformed way of thinking? The Spirit wasn't giving me turn-by-turn directions; the Spirit was changing how I understood God's faithfulness. I learned that God's plans aren't so fragile that one career choice could derail them. I learned that sometimes the Spirit's work is to give us peace in the uncertainty rather than clarity in the details.
I turned down the job. Not because I heard an audible voice or received a divine memo, but because I couldn’t shake something inside of me that kept telling me "It's not time yet." And honestly? I still don't know if it was the "right" decision in some cosmic sense. But I do know that God is still at work, still faithful, and still capable of using whatever path I'm walking.
Make it Personal: What decision are you agonizing over right now, waiting for a lightning bolt from heaven? What if God's will is less of a GPS with turn-by-turn directions and more of a compass that points you toward His character while trusting you to choose the path? Sometimes the greatest revelation isn't knowing what to choose but trusting that God is big enough to work through whatever you choose.
Pray: Father, thank You that Your plans aren't fragile and Your love isn't conditional on me making perfect decisions. Help me hear Your Spirit—not just in dramatic moments, but in the quiet transformation of how I think about You. Give me the courage to make decisions in freedom, trusting that You're faithful, regardless of which door I walk through, and that You will speak to me if I am stepping outside Your will. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Read: 1 Corinthians 2:9-11, Philippians 4:6-7
Weekly Memory Verse: “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.” John 16:7-8, ESV