Making Choices

Our choices affect us at the moment we make them, as well as for the rest of our life. We can make quick, impulsive decisions based on what we deem is best for the moment, or we can consult a multitude of counselors to obtain their help in order to see things from all sides before we make our choice (Proverbs 11:14, 15:22, 20:18; Luke 14:31). Some people, who are afraid to make a decision, drown in the facts they discover from their research and analysis; they take so long to make a decision that they end up missing the deadline or failing to make a choice at all. We all have our favorite way to make up our mind.

Even as Christians we use these various techniques to make choices. We short-circuit our self when we do this, however, because we fail to follow the Holy Spirit’s guidance. We prefer to make up our own mind and we hedge all of our bets with self-effort. We do this by souping up our devotion, revving up our church attendance, rising two hours early to spend more time in Bible study and praying for three hours instead of two. All of this extra effort is in the hopes of getting God on our side. We end up spinning our wheels for nothing and we lose the race anyway. What we learn in the long run is that God’s ways are higher than our ways.

We follow Jesus’ example as we pray, “Lord, not my will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). As we submit our will to God, we make all of our decisions in harmony with His will. He leads us by His firm peace that settles over our spirit. God also uses His Word, His Spirit and His Son within us to lead us through our day. Pray before you ever get out of bed and discover what God wants you to do first and how to do it. Once you accomplish that service, pray about His will for your next activity. He may even interrupt you in the middle of some chore and redirect you to do something else before you go back to that first activity.

When we consult the Lord, He conducts the symphony of our life to produce a beautiful concert for His glory. The will of God is not some unfathomable mystery, nor is it so difficult that it cannot be determined. God reveals His will to us one moment at a time throughout the day. God’s Spirit within us puts us in the right place at the right time to perform His will with all of the resources we need to succeed for His glory. The Spirit will never lead us to do anything contrary to the Word of God. He removes the phobic and neurotic tendencies in all of us and gives us His faith and peace in exchange.

Prayer:

Father God, our adventures with You begin with each new day. We may fail today, but tomorrow is another chance to follow the leading of Your Spirit moment by moment. Teach us not to rely on our human understanding when we make our choices. Lead us by Your Spirit in the way that we should go (Proverbs 3:5-6). Help us to focus more on making a difference in Your kingdom than on building our own kingdom in the earth.

Thought for the Day:

As we follow the direction of God’s Spirit throughout the day, we have confidence that He will use us according to His will and purpose.

Consulting the Lord

Joshua took over the leadership of Israel from Moses. He followed in Moses’ footsteps and sought God's direction for each decision he made and every action he took. He had no confidence in his own ability and He always relied on God’s counsel. God promised to give Joshua ever part of the land where he set his foot and declared that no army would stand against him (Joshua 1:3,5).

Therefore, after he put a few successful military campaigns under his belt, Joshua’s fame spread throughout the land (Joshua 6:27). He got overly confident and started to believe the accolades freely given to him by his admirers. The unconventional warfare at Jericho (Joshua 6:20) puffed up His pride, and at the next battle in the tiny town of Ai, Joshua failed to consult the Lord.

He relied on his own wisdom. He felt like he did not need to bother God because there were only a few men in the city. He sent up an army of about three thousand men, expecting to hear of their victory in no time. However, God taught Joshua a lesson through this and allowed the few men of Ai to rout Joshua’s army (Joshua 7:3-4). Essentially, Joshua ended up embarrassed and defeated.

It happened again when the Gibeonite ambassadors fooled Joshua and he failed once more to consult the Lord (Joshua 9:14). This was another case where Joshua foolishly believed he could handle the decision without the Lord’s direction. We do this too. We allow salesmen to pressure us, friends and family to manipulate us and those in authority over us to demand things from us before we take the time to pray about the decision they require us to make. We will never succeed in life without developing the habit of first consulting the Lord. 

If Joshua had bothered to confer with the Lord, he would have learned about one of his men who took from the spoils of Jericho and buried it under the ground in his tent. This was in direct violation to God’s command. The Lord’s anger burned against Israel. The sin in the camp prevented Israel’s victory in Ai (Joshua 7:12). Joshua failed because he rose up in pride (James 4:6), did not consult the Lord and went into battle with sin in the camp (Joshua 7: 5-26).

How often do we fail to consult the Lord before barging headlong into some scheme we plan? We do not want to bother God with our concerns and we struggle through them without His help and anointing. We may achieve a portion of success with this strategy, but it does not compare to the fulfillment we could reach by walking in the direction of God’s Holy Spirit each moment of the day (Galatians 5:16,25).

Eventually, like Joshua, we fail often enough that we realize that without God’s direction we can do nothing (John 15:5). The first step is to remove any known sin from our life. Then, it is only as we wait on the Lord, that we receive courage (Psalm 27:14). It is only with Him at our right hand that we can succeed (Psalm 16:8). Even as we walk through a deadly situation, God is with us (Psalm 23:4). He is our fortress and our refuge in times of trouble and we will sing of His love forever (Psalm 59:16).

Prayer:

Father God, as Your children, we will need to make some important decisions throughout our lifetime. We have the choice of following a humanistic plan of action or of seeking Your divine direction. Remind us to trust in You with all of our heart and not to lean on our own understanding. Help us not to be wise in our own eyes, but to consult You (Proverbs 3:5-7). That way we will not be anxious about anything, but we will pray about everything and present our requests to You (Philippians 4:6). When we lack wisdom, we can ask You, because You give it generously to all without finding fault (James 1:5).

Thought for the Day:

Consult the Lord in whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.
- Proverbs 16:3




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