Discerning the Will of Jesus

You're absolutely correct when it comes to the practical difficulties in discerning the will of God. When it comes down to specific things, such as you cited, we're not going to find guidance in Scripture to help. And if it's not in Scripture then we can't validate the "private revelations" people say they've received.

I think the response Willard would offer would be along these lines: don't concern yourself with the specifics of modern life, but rather the essential concepts of Christ's teaching. For instance, what would happen if we truly stopped being so obsessed with trying to get our way with things, particularly small things? I know I'm guilty as can be about this ... my sense of pride is easily wounded and I'll fight until I'm a bloody pulp to prove a point on principle. In so doing, I create all manner of external friction and internal turmoil. And the picture of me doing it is definitely not Christ-like. What if I instead inclined my heart towards God and said, "I trust in you, Lord, not me ... I will not try to get my way on this issue."

Think of the ramifications of that. Most of the conflict and turmoil in this world is of a relatively petty nature. Most of it springs out of people who sit on the thrones of their little kingdoms and try desparately to extend the reach of their power and influence. Now, it's unrealistic to assume people can abandon their thrones for long ... people won't follow nothing, they'll find something to follow. If we truly look to Jesus Christ not just for our salvation -- important as that is -- but as the Lord of our lives as well, over time our very beings will be transformed by the power of Christ to be more like him.

Look, I fully understand and appreciate the short-term problems with this. If I don't fight for my positions, I'll be steamrolled by those who fight for theirs. Here, I think, a principled separation of "big stuff" from "small stuff" is necessary. Do I stand back and not stop an injustice that I'm within my power to stop? No ... I am clearly called by Christ to hate injustice and to work to eliminate it. Do I pitch a hissy-fit because someone stepped in front of me in a queue? No ... that would be me simply seeking to "have my way" over something that in reality makes little real difference.

There are no cut-and-dry answers, of course. If I seek them, I immediately fall prey to problems and legalism. That's how the Jewish faith got so legalistic -- they tried to codify every last known permutation of everything. Hence all the strict and arcane "laws."

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I'm not saying I'm fully on board all this. What I do know is that I've long felt that faith and trust in Christ has to be something more than just faith and trust that his death and resurrection will get me into heaven. But I also recognize there's a real tension here ... between one extreme (faith and no change in my life) and the other (works righteousness). I'm still working it all out.

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You like your isolation ... nothing wrong with that. Some people are quiet and introspective, others are more outgoing. I'm a quite and introspective person as well. My desire for isolation goes only so far, though ... eventually I start craving some other human contact. The idea of being some isolated research scientist in the Arctic, with nothing but a radio, would drive me nuts.

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Speaking of toilets, I read a fascinating article about a month ago about an engineer who has dedicated himself to toilet design. In the United States the government mandated low-flow toilets some 10 or so years ago. At first the toilets were manufactured with a smaller tank, and that's all. Those worked horribly. This engineer was saying how they've discovered that there's actually a fairly amazing set of physics that takes place to effectively flush a toilet with 1.6 gallons of water. In the mundane sparkles the amazing, I guess.