Making decisions is rarely easy to do. One of the most important times to get it right is when you are deciding on a new job offer. In my career as a full-time volunteer, I often have the luxury of choosing which country I wish to work in. Jesus said, "The harvest is plenteous but the laborers are few." That means that the need is so great that you could go just about anywhere and dig in and make a difference. But of course, some job opportunities in some countries may be more suitable for your talents than others.

About two years ago, my wife and I were at a crossroads. I had just turned 50, and there is some indefinable thing that happens to our psyche each time our age rolls over to a new decade. The realization begins to dawn that we're not getting any younger and we don't have as many strong years left. My wife and I were looking for new challenges--but where? We needed to decide which country to go to next, and we needed to get it right.

We had several offers, but two stood out above the others. One was to work at the Activated magazine's California office; the other was to join a team working in the Middle East. We added up all of the advantages and disadvantages in neat columns, but they came out equal. We read God's Word and spent time daily trying to hear from Him what His will was and how we fit into that plan, but it all seemed a bit foggy. There were just too many variables to know exactly where each path would take us. What we needed was one of those good old upright, downright, Heaven-right revelations. We wanted some words of assurance from the Lord, something we could stand firm on later if fears and doubts assailed us, something that we could look back on and know that we had made the right decision regardless of the circumstances we might find ourselves in.

The answer we needed came in the form of a beautiful clear picture--what one might call a vision.

One verse that has always been helpful in times like this is Matthew 7:7--an easy reference to remember. "Ask and it will be given you."--Simple yet true. The passage goes on to say that if we ask for bread, our heavenly Father won't give us a stone. We ask, He answers. Sometimes His answer is yes, sometimes it's no, and sometimes it's wait.

For weeks we didn't know which way to go, so we kept asking. We were like the importunate woman in a parable Jesus told who kept pestering the judge until he finally got fed up and gave her what she wanted (Luke 18:1-8).

The answer we needed came in the form of a beautiful clear picture--what one might call a vision. I once heard someone define visions as dreams you have when you are awake. Others call them pictures from Heaven, received while in prayer.

The picture was of a glowing golden staircase that ascended to the right. In our case this was significant because we were living in Texas at the time and the Middle East was to the right of us as we looked at a map of the world, and California was to the left. That was the clear indication from the Lord that we had been praying for--our starting point--and we acted on it. As we did, God confirmed His will through another vision, financial supply, and other answers to prayer.

It has been nearly two years now since we have been here in the Middle East, and we have never been happier! The need here is great, the people are extremely friendly and receptive, and new doors of opportunity for service are opening daily.

After living this life of faith for some 30 years now, I can truly say that He has never failed in one of all His good promises (1 Kings 8:56). "God is not a man, that He should lie. ... Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?" (Numbers 23:19). Jesus is our Good Shepherd and will always show the way. All we have to do is listen to His voice and follow.

God has a plan for my life. His words in Jeremiah 29:11-13 remind me of this: "I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."

C. Peter Van Gorder is a full-time volunteer with The Family in the Middle East.