Did I do Iwhat I wanted to do, convincing myself it was God’s will?

on Jul 17, 2026

From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Q: I’ve sacrificed my entire bank account to help others through a ministry I started in the name of Jesus and I’ve failed. Some people tell me that I wanted to do what I wanted to do, convincing myself it was God’s will. Is this possible? – F.P.

A: The Spirit of God will never lead contrary to the Word of God. People often say, “The Lord led me to do this … the Lord told me how I should respond … .” But do such people really consult the Lord in prayer and through His Word (the Bible)? This is how God speaks to us today.

We must pray and ask the Lord to make His desires our desires. We must ask Him to show us from His Word the motive of our hearts, because God will never direct us to do anything contrary to His Word. But neither do things necessarily happen according to our expectations. Sometimes He allows us to fail so that we will stay ever close to Him.

The Prophet Samuel said, “Obedience is better than sacrifice” (see 1 Samuel 15:22). God wants His people to obey Him. This is not a word that is accepted so easily in the society of today. We live in a culture of self-satisfaction, and Christians can be guilty of claiming to do something in the name of God when in fact they are using God’s name to justify what they want more than anything.

The Bible says, “All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits” (Proverbs 16:2, NKJV). This is so important. Christians should not miss this word of wisdom. We must pray that the Lord will reveal to us our motives and then bring our wills before Him and place them on the altar and take up His ways, His thoughts, and His deeds as we follow Him.

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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)