How are we to know "the will of God?" In this honest discussion, veteran pastor and theologian James C. Howell considers a number of issues relating to God's will, how it is known, how it is done, and how we respond when bad things happen and we feel God is absent or has turned away from us.

In this sensitive presentation, Howell explores these questions and provides ways of recognizing the true things to which we can hold in the midst of hard times. Howell proceeds simply and practically to consider personal understandings of God, God's will for our lives, and ways in which God's will is lived. He reflects on what to do and believe when bad things happen, "why they happen, and the quest for God in the midst of it all, recognizing that God's will is for good.

Howell provides pastoral and theological help for the issues we face in life, showing us what we can do and how to "believe even more deeply in God, even as we grieve losses, resist evil, and muster hope." Questions for discussion accompany each chapter.

James Howell is Pastor of the Myers Park United Methodist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.