How do you effectively set a long-term course for your life?
I know of at least two different books in my library that address the issue of finding God’s will for my life. One in particular has been especially helpful. (I also like the fact that it’s short.)
Found: God’s Will by John MacArthur
The big decisions in life (work, relationships, etc.) are usually not easy and shouldn’t be rushed into without careful thought and prayer.
Several verses come to mind:
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4:13-15 ESV)
Obviously there’s a place for planning ahead. I’ve heard numerous mentions of the “fail to plan, plan to fail” axiom. But how do I deal with the following verse on a practical level?
The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps. (Proverbs 16:9 ESV)
These are powerful words, but they sort of cloud my decision-making abilities.
Is the proverbial “fork-in-the-road” moment merely an either/or decision?
J. Michael Hansen 
God has given us His general will in His Word, and we will do well if we follow that plan. However, as I understand it, He has given us His Spirit guide us. As we make our plans, we must first sure that our plans are in keeping with His general will for our lives – that we are not violating His Word – and then, through pray and careful thought and planning, we can proceed with “our plans” following our heart’s desires, which should be in agreement with God’s desires, and trust that if our plans are not God’s plans for us, He will divert our plans in the direction that He wants us to go. Though it all, we must “rest” in our trust in His will for us. That is living by “faith,” but that does not exclude our part in planning.
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