With the recent passing of my favorite author, Elisabeth Elliot, I have been reflecting on the impact her writings have had on my life, especially during my early 20s when I desperately wanted to know God’s will for my life. So many questions pervaded my mind during that time. Looming large over them all was the overarching theme of what God wants me to do. Then I came upon a quote from her that said, “Do the next thing.” I was hoping for a detailed roadmap of everything that was supposed to happen in my life when God was telling me just to take the next step. At the time I was primarily a student, so I understood for that time God was calling me to be the best student possible. Once that assignment was complete, He would show me what was next.

In the years since, some of those initial questions have been answered but many others have shown up. As life progresses, new questions of God’s will spring forth. We won’t see the full picture this side of eternity. If we could, faith would be unnecessary. Faith is a daily walk listening for the Lord’s still, small voice saying, “This is the way. Walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21 HSCB. Through God’s roadmap, the Bible, He shows us step by step what direction to take. In 1 Corinthians 13:12, the Apostle Paul noted that we only see things in part right now, like looking in a mirror. One day we will have full knowledge when we meet the Lord face to face. Until then, we must keep walking in faith and simply “do the next thing.”