What Does It Mean for God to Guide Us?

Here are the three main points of J. I. Packer and Carolyn Nystrom’s book, Guard Us, Guide Us: Divine Leading in Life’s Decisions (pp. 235-236):

First, God’s guidance is a covenanted aspect of his larger ministry of

graciously guarding us against sin’s folly and Satan’s malice

in order to bring us safe and sound to glory.

Second, our quest for guidance should be thought of as essentially a quest for the wisdom we need to cope with all the demands for decision that come to us in our waking lives, rather than with just a few big ones.
Third, the gift of God-centered peace of heart

as we contemplate and embrace

the best,
wisest, and
most God-honoring option to us

is God’s ordinary way of confirming to us that we have attained the wisdom that we sought by

observing circumstances,
praying for a clear head and discerning heart,
searching the Scriptures,
consulting experienced friends, and
thinking hard before the Lord.

This peace, be it said, is not any sort of informative nudge;
it is, rather, a sense that

the quest is ended,
the solution has been found, and
no more puzzling over the matter is necessary.

Justin Taylor