There several times in my life that I have sought God’s wisdom. I believe from scriptures that God has wisdom and wants to share it with us. (Proverbs 8:1) (Colossians 1:9) (James 1:5) I have often prayed when facing with a fork in the road. Should I go to college? What should I study? Should I get a job? Where should I work? Whom should I date? Should I get married? Should I have kids? Sometimes, I have felt like there was a clear answer, and other times I did what I thought was best considering my options.
Occasionally, I have gone down a path that I felt bad about and I was like, “Oh no, I shouldn’t be doing this.” I personally attribute this to conscience. (Romans 2:15) This is the internal speed bump when making choices that are going to harm themselves or others. Those can be ignored with hardening of one’s heart, but I believe they’re in everyone to begin with.
Occasionally, very occasionally, I have felt that God has given me something to do or not to outside of my regular scope. Sometimes, I argue internally. Sometimes I have felt like God wants me to do something and I don’t want do it because it’ll make me embarrassed or be hard. So I pause and think, “Am I really listening to God or am I schizophrenic?” To get a question out of my own head I follow these two steps.
Number one, I read the syllabus. I’ve taught English long enough. The first place that students need to go when they have a question is the syllabus that the professor gave to them. We have the Old and New Testament and those have a lot of information in them. It’s important to be familiar with them in order to follow the Lord. Don’t just pull out the memory verse that agrees with everything you like. A complete reading of the scriptures gives you the best chance at understanding the heart of God.
Number two, ask a fellow a believer in Christ that you respect. Now this one is tricky because sometimes a lot of otherwise good people can be wrong about something. Nearly all the religious leaders of Jesus time were wrong about him, except Nicodemus, who was correct, but shy. Peer pressure is really strong in church, both good and bad, unfortunately.
This is how you’re going to know if this works. You’re going to meet with a Christian advisor and they’re going to either set you straight, or agree with you. In the setting straight, they will take away your shame or ego. Sometimes, they too succumb to fear and doubt. And sometimes, you will trigger something God called them to do, then it’s about their deal and not really helpful for you.
When it comes to faith, sometimes you will have to take the first step by yourself. Then if things start working out, people will follow you. That is called leadership. Or you will fail and it’ll be a Tuesday. Yesterday‘s failures are today’s points of reference. 
Those are the two external tests that work reliably for me. In the Bible, there’s a couple times when a prophet was told to do something by God that they really didn’t want to do so they ran a test. Those are called fleeces. It is from a story in the book of Judges when Gideon was told by God to fight a foreign army with a tiny band of soldiers. He was super scared, so he put out a sheepskin and asked that it be wet with dew. God made it wet. Then he asked that it would be dry. God made it dry. God did it for him because Gideon was acting in good faith. 
Everyone wants to see a miracle, but they can come from a place of disobedience, too. Pharaoh got ten very clear signs to let the people of Israel go and it nearly destroyed his whole nation in the process. God‘s first mode of communication is a still, small voice, but He can also talk in disasters.
It’s OK to be a little scared when it comes to knowing the word of the Lord. (Psalms 11:10) We follow the Lord with fear and trembling not because God is bad and therefore scary. We do this with respect because the stakes are high. God wants to be known and he’s pouring out his spirit on his people, so be ready. (Joel 2:28-29)
