There are different options available to me right now, but my heart is very torn. I keep feeling that God wants me to do an internship with a Christian company, but God has never led me in the past simply by my feelings. And to make it worse, I don’t even want to do this internship.

Should I trust in this feeling and take a leap of faith or wait for a more solid answer?

Perplexed

Dear Perplexed:
God speaks to us through His Word, through our hearts (feelings), through our mind (logic) and through other people such as parents, pastors and other Christians. I’m glad you’re not depending only on feelings, because our feelings frequently fluctuate.

As God speaks to our hearts, He does so with the desires He has placed within us. Because you’re intently seeking His will, and because of your deep desire to be in the center of His will, I believe you’re on the right track and at this point can look to your heart.

The fact that you just don’t have the desire to be an intern with this specific organization says a lot. God is certainly big enough to change your heart’s desires if He wants you to go that direction.

For now, I’d pray, “Lord, I’m willing to do this internship if it’s Your will, but because the desire isn’t there, I’m assuming You’re OK with me saying no to this opportunity. I’m going to proceed in a different direction unless You make it obvious that I’m not doing what You want me to do.”

This places the responsibility in God’s hands.

Dear Susie:
I just graduated from high school and am praying about God's will for my life. I love to write and think I might want to pursue a career with a Christian magazine. Got some advice on what major to pursue or what goals I should set to make this happen?

Pursuing

Dear Pursuing:
Degrees in English, journalism or communications are all good choices to pursue a position with a magazine. Journalism is slightly different from creative writing. Journalism focuses on a more fact-oriented approach, whereas creative writing allows more freedom to write with feeling.

You may also want to consider participating in the Focus on the Family Institute for college juniors, seniors or grad students. If your college participates, you’ll receive credit for the one semester you’re here, and you’ll get to intern for a department in which you’re interested. We’ve had several Brio interns the past few years, and we’ve actually hired three of them as full-time Brio staffers.

I received a bachelor’s degree in a double major of communications and education with a double minor in English and creative writing. I later completed my master’s degree in creative writing.

Our associate editor, Martha Krienke, received a bachelor’s degree in communications with an emphasis in journalism and a minor in graphic design. Our assistant editor, Ashley Boyer, got her bachelor’s degree in English writing with a Spanish minor. Ashley Mays, our editorial assistant, followed the same path: English writing and a minor in Spanish.