Opportunity – Blessing or Distraction?

A dear friend called me to discuss how one can discern between an opportunity that is brought from God and an opportunity that looks good on the outside, but is really just a distraction from what God wants you to do.  They had read my last post on how the enemy uses deception.  I wrote that one of the ways deception comes packaged is as an attractive opportunity – often one that looks like it might be from God.  So, my friend asked, how do you tell the difference?  I don’t have a sure-fire answer, but I felt God prompting me to flesh this out a bit more in a blog post today.  I believe that there are some basic truths that can guide us in discerning whether a particular opportunity is a blessing or a distraction:

1. Opportunities Come From One of Two Sources – They either come from the hand of God, in which case they are a blessing, or they come from His enemy to distract us.  There are no other sources.  Either it is something that God is bringing into your life as a blessing to you and/or others, or it is something being brought to steal attention away from that which God would really have you focus on.  There are no other sources, no neutral or in-between options.  It’s either from God or against Him.
2. God Has A Definite Opinion – I believe that God cares deeply about how you respond to this particular opportunity.  There is a thought I often hear in Christian circles that God doesn’t really care what particular opportunities we choose, as long as they honor Him.  I could not disagree more.  Scripture does not bear witness to a God that is distant or disinterested.  It doesn’t describe a God who is only engaged in our lives at key points, with just a casual awareness of us most of the time.  Instead, Scripture describes a God who comes to live in us – a God who cares deeply about everything from what we eat, what we wear, how we love, where we live, and every other little detail of our life.  He cares about whether we seize or pass up this particular opportunity.
3. The Fruit of the Tree Bears Witness to the Nature of the Tree – I believe that one of the greatest indicators of whether a particular opportunity is a blessing from God or a distraction from His enemy is the reaction within our own spirit.  If an opportunity is coming from the Tree of Life, it will bear life-giving fruit in my life, even as I am discerning it.  For me that manifests itself as a growing sense of excitement and enthusiasm about the opportunity.  God gives me glimpses of my role and how He is going to use me.  I can’t stop thinking about it.  Yes, there is usually some fear and trepidation associated with it, but that is strongly overshadowed by my growing passion to be involved.  If instead, the opportunity is coming from the twisted tree of distraction, it will bear life-draining fruit in my life, even as I am discerning it.  For me, this manifests itself as a growing sense of dread.  I can imagine some potential wins, but I’m not passionate about my personal involvement.  I find myself motivated primarily by thoughts of “I should do this” rather than “I want to do this.”  My growing discontent makes me want to run.  I believe that God, living in us, helps us to have such strong emotions – positive or negative – to help lead us down the path He wants us to take.  I believe this one of the primary ways He answers our prayers for clarity.

What opportunities are you facing right now and how are you internally responding to it?