When I first became a Christian and went to Bible school I was very zealous. The older Christians had a saying they picked up somewhere: "The world is waiting to see the person who will go all the way with God, who will do God's perfect will."

Being single and without close relatives I volunteered for the job. I told God if He would give me the grace I would do His perfect will.

A short time later I had a dream. In the dream I was on a ship that was breaking up. The sailors were jumping off into the water. So were the passengers and they were drowning.

I jumped over the side and started paddling around. Having been raised close to the ocean I have no fear of the water. I looked toward the shore, which was visible in the distance, and the sailors were playing ring-around-the-rosy on the beach a child's game.

I looked back toward the people who were drowning. Then I noticed I could stand up in the water. It was only up to my waist.

So I turned to go back and advise the people to cease panicking. All they had to do was stand up and they could walk to the shore.

Then I awakened.

For a few days I pondered the dream, and then it came to me. God's perfect will is readily available to people and they do not know it. They are laboring under the notion that no one can do God's will, or that God's will is some horrible task that no one would desire. But the truth is, God wants every one of His children to do His delightful will at all times and in every detail of life.

I have been preaching the overcoming life since the time of the dream, some fifty years ago.

It is expected of every believer that he or she do God's will totally and completely in every instance. There is no other acceptable Christian life. Anything less than this is rebellion, it is disobedience to our Father in Heaven.

Last night in church we prayed that God would remove from us this satanic cloud that leaves us feeling we cannot do God's will. We most certainly can with His help. And we most certainly must!

The truth is, every action we take that is not God's will for us, whether we are aware of His will or not, leads us away from perfect joy. We just have to learn to believe God is on our side. He is seeking our eternal joy.

The original lie of Satan addressed to Eve was that God was not seeking for her that which was in her best interest. If Eve would only take matters into her own hands she would be happy. Eve took matters into her own hands and look how happy she was for nine hundred years!

Yet we never, never learn. Today Satan is telling the church people that if they keep control of their lives they will be happier than if they give everything to Christ. Can you imagine? And the people believe this!

When you talk to Evangelical Christians about God building a wall against sin in their personality they are fearful indeed. They are afraid they are going to lose something of value if they turn their will over to God to do His will.

To be continued.