Smoother Sailing Article – Decisions, Decisions
By Pastor Barry Black
“Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure
and stedfast.” Hebrews 6.19
We all face choices and decisions every day. No matter who
you are, how young or old, whatever your educational
background, or your social standing; making decisions is
something that we all have in common. We have all made
unwise decisions at one time or another. Things we wish we
had NOT done. Maybe we have made purchases that we later
regretted; emotions we wish we had controlled, attitudes we
wish we had changed, taken the dishonest way out of
something when we could have just as easily done what was
right, formed relationships that we later regretted. Or
maybe it is something that we didn’t do, that we wish that
we WOULD have done. A class we should have taken, a degree
or training program we should have taken, a job we should
have applied for, someone to whom we should have explained
the gospel, or given a gospel tract, taken more quality
time with family, stopped to enjoy life more.
Maybe there are decisions that we have made that we just
knew was God’s will, but may not have been. There’s a
story of an old Scottish woman who went house-to-house
across the countryside selling thread, buttons and shoe
strings. When she would come to a fork in the road she
would toss a stick up in the air and go in the direction it
pointed when it landed. One day, however, she was seen
tossing the stick up several times. “Why do you toss the
stick up so many times?” someone asked. “Because,” she
replied, “it keeps pointing to the left and I want to take
the road to the right.” She kept tossing the stick until it
finally pointed to the right. Sometimes we treat God
like that.
Basically, we have all made choices and decisions we wish
that we could go back and do over. This article is
certainly not an “all you need to know guide” for making
decisions. Hopefully it will help you to make decisions
more wisely.
Making Godly wisdom my Spiritual map
Let’s look and see what scripture has to say. As
Christians, one of the first guidelines for making
decisions should be the desire to do God’s will for our
life, whatever God’s will may be or may include. Romans
12.1,2:
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And
be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by
the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that
good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
With that in mind, to find His will, we
certainly need His wisdom. We need to see our decision –
the circumstances of it, the choice(s) we face, etc. from
God’s perspective. Let’s begin with the words of the
Apostle Paul in Ephesians 5.15-17:
“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as
wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will
of the Lord is.”. He uses the word,
“circumspectly” – meaning: carefully, precisely.
Paul the gives a command in the negative: “be ye not
wise”. In other words, we need not be ignorant in our
spiritual walk (including the decisions we make). It is
God’s desire for us that we walk wisely (including our
decisions and choices), so therefore we should obey Him and
seek that wisdom – from His word, from the direction of His
Holy Spirit, through godly counsel, etc. The first step in
seeking God’s will should be to desire God’s wisdom about
the decision(s) we are making. In the book of James, we are
promised:
James 1.5 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of
God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not;
and it shall be given him.”
3 Categories of Unwise People in Proverbs
Let’s take a moment to look at what Proverbs has to say
about making wise decisions. In fact, since we saw the
command in Ephesians 5.15-17 to “be not unwise”,
there are some passages in Proverbs which warn about those
who are unwise. Let’s look at them and learn what to avoid.
1.The “simple” or naïve person – Proverbs
1.22
“How long, ye simple ones, will ye love
simplicity?” or as another translation puts it,
“How much longer will you enjoy being stupid
fools?”
The simple or naïve person lacks wisdom. The simple or
naïve person could make better decisions and choices in
life if they listened to and applied wisdom.
The simple or naïve person LOVES his simplicity.
The Greek philosopher, Demosthenes was lecturing on moral
issues. His audience soon seemed bored and uninterested, so
he told them a story. There was a man struggling to
cross a mountain with a great load of sticks on his back.
Along came another man with a donkey who said, “Why stumble
along? Rent my donkey, and he will carry those sticks.” So
he did. He put the sticks on the donkey’s back and resumed
his journey. The sun was blazing hot, so he sat down to
rest in the donkey’s shade. But the donkey’s owner tried to
rest in the same shadow. Unfortunately there wasn’t enough
room. So they began to argue about who owned the shade of
the donkey. The argument became furious. At this point
in the story, Demosthenes walked off the stage. The
audience began to whisper, then mumble, then some began to
call for Demosthenes to come back on stage. So he returned
to the stage and said to his audience, “A few moments
ago I was talking to you about issues of life and death,
and you paid no attention. But now you are all up in arms
about who owns the shade of a donkey?” His audience
was of simple minds. They had a mindset that tuned out
serious issues and fed on simplicity. Look at Proverbs
14.15, 22.3.
The simple or naïve person walks right into danger, they
don’t think about it; make no preparation to avoid
consequences. Someone well said, “When the helmsman
does not know what port he is heading for, no wind is the
right wind.” If you take a walk and you aren’t
looking, you may run into something. You may head down the
wrong path or the wrong direction.
2.The Scoffer or Scornful person
Scoffers/scorners are different from
the simple. Whereas the simple lack wisdom, the scoffer
realizes what is wise and right, yet shows contempt for
wisdom. A scoffer/scorner knows the difference between
right and wrong, but just does not obey. They would rather
“gamble with the odds” so to speak, than to avoid
wrongdoing.
Proverbs 13.1 “The wise son heareth his father’s
instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.”
The wise persons hears and heeds when
instruction is given; scorners refuse to listen instruction
becomes rebuke.
Proverbs 9.7a,8a “He that reproveth a scorner getteth
to himself shame…Reprove not a scorner, let he hate thee…”
A simple person can possibly be corrected.
However, a scorner mocks what is right, and applauds
wrongdoing.
3.The Foolish Person –
Ephesians 5.15 “be not unwise”
A foolish person is one step down from the
scorner/scoffer. The simple lack wisdom, the
scorner/scoffer refuses wisdom, but the foolish person
hates wisdom and righteousness: Proverbs 14.9 “Fools
make a mock at sin…”
The fool rejects wisdom and will not receive
correction:
Proverbs 17.10 “A reproof entereth more into a wise man
than an hundred stripes into a fool.”
Some helpful guidelines
Every time we make a decision, whether we realize
it or not, it is preceded by questions such as:
“What is at stake, or at risk here?” “What could I
possibly gain, or possibly lose by making this decision?”
“What are the consequences?” It is very wise to
realize that every decision has consequences, whether good
or bad.
When we make decisions, we usually do so by
following basic guidelines:
One, we want to get the most out
of life. Since the decisions we make carry consequences, we
most likely want what will benefit us now or later, or
hopefully both. Ask yourself, “will this get me where I
want to go in my life?” Or maybe word it in the negative,
“will this decision keep me from circumstances which I know
I do not need to be in?”
Secondly, we want to have the least amount of
unpleasant consequences. It is human nature to follow the
path of least resistance; and whether it is a financial
decision, a moral decision, a business deal, or a
relationship, it is human nature to see just how close we
can get to the edge, and be “safe”.
However, as a believer, we should add at least this
third guideline: Will this decision please my Lord,
and result in His blessing? “Will this get me where the
Lord will want me to be so that He can bless me, and make
me a blessing to others?”
And keep in mind…
There are very few shortcuts in life.
It is human tendency to ask, “What is
acceptable?” But what is acceptable is not always right.
What seems to be acceptable now may result in much more
difficult circumstances or consequences further down the
road. If you make a mess of your life, you should not
expect one decision to change everything overnight! I have
found this quote to be true and helpful: “We make our
decisions, and then our decisions turn around and make
us.” – Frank Boreham
There are some choices that we face in which it may
be easier to do what is wrong than to do what is right.
In other words, there are times when doing
right is not easy at all. It is always best to do what is
right, even when it is difficult. Sometimes the choice is
clear “this choice is wrong, this choice is right”.
Sometimes either choice could be a “right” choice.
There are few if any “perfect decisions” in life.
There are times in life when things come
our way. We didn’t ask for them to happen, and we wouldn’t
have chosen the circumstances. But whether it is something
that seems to be forced upon us, or something that totally
catches us off guard; NOTHING comes into the life of the
Christian without first making its way through the
all-knowing mind, the all-loving heart, and the
all-powerful hands of our Holy, Awesome Heavenly Father!
Sometimes we can have several choices, and all of them
could be good choices (i.e. could all have more positive
consequences than negative). When that is the case, we
should seek God’s will and apply biblical principles of
wise decision making.
Realize that even the best decisions can result in
negative consequences!
In the scriptures, there are several
examples of people who did right, and “took it on the
chin”. Joseph did what was right – he fled from enticement
by Potiphar’s wife, yet he was falsely accused and
imprisoned. Daniel was a man of faith, a man of prayer. He
prayed 3 times a day, and even when it was, if I may say it
this way, “politically incorrect”. Knowing that
there would be consequences, he continued to pray, and into
the lions den he went. God delivered him miraculously. Paul
and some of the other Apostles in the book of Acts were
beaten and imprisoned for preaching the gospel. Or as
someone said, “You can’t do what is right, and get away
with it.”
Sometimes the easiest choice is the choice that is
wrong.
Unfortunately, some right choices are very
difficult; and there are times where it would be much
easier to give in and do wrong than to take the “higher
ground” and do what is right. The fact that it is sometimes
easier to do what is wrong than what is right is
exemplified in this poem:
Are You A Builder?
I saw them tearing a building down,
A group of men in a busy town,
With hefty blow and a lusty yell,
They swung with zest, and a side wall fell.
I asked of the foreman "Are these men skilled?
The kind you'd hire if you had to build?"
He looked at me, laughed and said "No indeed!
Unskilled labor is all I need!
"Why, they can wreck in a day or two
what it has taken builders years to do!"
And I asked myself as I went my way,
"Which of these rolls have I tried to play?
Am I a builder with rule and square
Measuring and constructing with skill and care?
Or . . .Am I a wrecker who walks the town,
Content with the business of tearing down.”
Author unknown
Of course the point here is not that working on a
demolition crew is wrong! The point is that sometimes the
easier choice – the path of least resistance, the quickest
results – may not always be what is right or what is best.
Mistakes and failures are opportunities to start
over more intelligently.
Mistakes and failures sometimes occur as a
result of our choice(s); but sometimes they are the result
of the choices that others make which in turn affect us.
The person who fails is not necessarily a failure. A
failure is a person who gives up and never tries to move
forward in their life.
It is never too late to do what is right.
It may not be easy to do what is right, but
it is never too late. It may not be possible to undo or
redo what has been done, but it is never late to do what is
right.