Decision-Making and the Will of God

Have you ever thought about how many decisions we make during a lifetime? Or even over the course of a single day?

 

Probably not, because we’re too busy making decisions to bother tabulating how many we’ve made. But as a speaker recently reminded me, from the time we reach high school, life becomes an endless parade of one decision after another.

 

When we’re kids, the ‘decisions’ we make are more like impulses: Which toy to play with. Whether to eat the food Mom puts in front of us. Whether to read a book or play a video game on our tablet. Whether to clean up our room as we’re told. At that stage of life, we don’t really calculate the significance or consequences of what we do. It’s simply a matter of ‘I want to’ or ‘I don’t want to.’

Decisions – and the decision-making process – take on much more gravity when we reach the high school level. In high school we start to discover and confirm our interests. We decide whether to try out for sports – and which ones. Or we can opt for things like band, which I did. Being in our school marching, concert and dance bands were the highlights of my time at ole Franklin High.

 

As a freshman, being on the college-prep track, I had to choose things like which foreign language to study and which elective subjects to take. I chose Latin and Spanish, which turned out to be very beneficial for my writing career – even though I didn’t realize it then. I also took a year of personal typing, another serendipitous decision that would prove extremely useful.

 

From high school, our decisions become more numerous and complex. Should I go to college? And if so, which one? What should I major in? If I don’t go to college, which line of work should I pursue? We make decisions about where to live, whether to accept a job offer, which car to buy, whether we’re on the right career path, whether we should get married (and to whom), whether we should have children (and when)?

 

Before we know it, we’ve made thousands of decisions, some with very little thought but others we agonized over, realizing they could have long-term ramifications.

 

How are we to master this lifelong process of decision-making? I’m reminded of the young man who asked his mentor, “How do you make good decisions?” The mentor answered, “Through experience.” “How do I gain experience?” the protégé asked. His mentor smiled and replied, “By making bad decisions.”

 

No one wants to make bad decisions, but inevitably we will. Our hope is that the consequences of bad decisions aren’t too serious and can be remedied.

 

There are many perspectives on how to make decisions. For instance, the late New York Yankees catcher and ‘sage’ Yogi Berra suggested to someone, “If you find a fork in the road, take it.” Poet Robert Frost, in “The Road Not Taken,” one of his best-known poems, wrote about “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

 

Those of us who are followers of Jesus Christ wrestle with decision-making from a different angle. We ask, “What is God’s will?” reasoning that if God is omniscient – all-knowing – then it would be a good idea to know what He expects of us. The problem is, His will isn’t always clear, especially in regard to specific options we’re considering.

 

For instance, nowhere in the Scriptures does it say, “Go to XYZ College,” or “Work for Such-and-Such Company.” The Bible doesn’t tell us which car to drive. Nor does it specify the name of the person we should marry.

 

However, the Word of God does provide us with sound principles to follow for making crucial decisions. If I’m wondering, “What flavor ice cream cone should I buy?” I’m pretty sure God would say, “Makes no difference to Me. You choose.” But if we’re weighing whether to attend a party where we know there will be an abundance of alcohol and raucous behavior, even a cursory look at the Scriptures makes clear what His will is. We’re told in 1 Thessalonians 4:37, “It is God’s will that you should be sanctified…. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.”

 

In some cases, God’s will couldn’t be more obvious. In 1 Thessalonians 5:18, for example, we’re told, “in everything give thanks, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” In other words, whether we find ourselves in desirable or undesirable circumstances, we’re to be thankful for them, trusting God is working through them for our ultimate good.

 

The apostle Peter admonished, “It is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil” (1 Peter 3:17). We will encounter suffering in this life. There’s no question about that. But we should make certain when suffering comes, we haven’t brought it on ourselves. That’s God’s will.

 

If we want to learn how to make good decisions – and avoid making bad ones – there’s no better source for counsel than God’s Word. Whether it’s learning from the bad decisions made by central figures of the Old Testament; drawing insight from wisdom books like Psalms and Proverbs; or studying and seeking to apply the teachings of Jesus, we can find more than enough help for navigating the complex and often confusing world of decision-making.

As Proverbs 1:7 instructs, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Good decision-making starts with knowing God, trusting Him, and obeying what He says. 

Deciding Which Road to Take

Over the years I’ve enjoyed the writings of the late poet Robert Frost. Perhaps my favorite is his poem, “The Road Not Taken,” partly because it’s so profound in its simplicity.

Even though it consists of only 20 lines, I’ll not quote it in entirety, but here are the key verses:

The most-traveled path is not
always the best to follow.

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair….

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

That last thought, “I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference,” echoes as a reminder that taking the most popular, well-traveled path may seem convenient but it’s not always the best.

This poem brings to mind another quote I came across some time back: “It’s better to walk alone than with a crowd going in the wrong direction.”

We used to hear a lot about the pitfalls of peer pressure, how striving to please those around us and following their lead could result in serious consequences. That hasn’t changed. It’s probably been the case since the beginning of time. Shepherds understand that sheep are prone to follow each other, even into calamity, and the prophet Isaiah observed thousands of years ago, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray…” (Isaiah 53:6). In many ways we are indeed like sheep, following the crowd, sometimes without a clue about where we’re heading.

At one time the Judeo-Christian ethic was largely embraced in our society – not only in our churches, but also schools, houses of government, and even places of business. That’s where our notions of loving our neighbors as ourselves, doing to others as we would have them do to us, and being kind to strangers came from. Today, however, society as a whole seems intent on drifting away from principles that undergirded our everyday lives – and excluding God from the entire equation.

Increasingly, those of us who believe we stand accountable before a holy, all-knowing, almighty God find ourselves having to take this “road less traveled by.” Does that mean we’re in the wrong, that mankind has suddenly gotten so smart God is no longer necessary? Have we become so “enlightened”?

I doubt it. Highly intelligent people throughout the centuries have honored and worshipped God and viewed their lives and work as ways of serving Him and others. In our culture we tend to equate “blessings” with prosperity, but ironically we’ve been so blessed in that way many people no longer feel a need for God. That’s doesn’t mean He’s no longer there – or that His ways are no longer right.

Jesus often spoke about this, noting that even the religious leaders were more concerned about what other people thought of them than how they were viewed by God. Peer pressure, and the adoration of men, served as their motivations. This is why the Lord admonished His followers, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

Long before Robert Frost wrote his celebrated poem, Jesus spoke about a spiritual road less traveled. “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

This doesn’t mean becoming regulated by a system of rules and rituals, but rather recognizing that although the vast majority may be joining in following a popular path, they may in fact be heading in the wrong direction. As Proverbs 16:25 warns, “There is a way that appears to be right, but in the end it leads to death.”

This is why Joshua, not long before he died, declared to the Israelites he had been leading, “chose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). This is a choice we each must make – it can’t happen by default. If we don’t consciously make this decision, it’s very likely someone will make it for us. And in these times, when people choose the road they will take, it’s not the one that leads to God.

Resolving to Enjoy the Journey

Just because it’s been said many times, that doesn’t mean we don’t need to be reminded: Life is a journey, not a destination. As someone on a talk show observed recently, if we don’t enjoy special moments along the way, we might find the destination isn’t what we thought it would be.

Sometimes in writing blog posts I lecture myself, and this is one of those times. I tend to focus on the destination – the goal – and neglect to stop and smell the proverbial flowers along the way. Maybe that’s one reason I enjoy taking photographs wherever I go. After the trip’s over, I can go back and review the pictures I took, revisit the experience, and maybe remember what I should have been paying closer attention to at the time.

When we’re children we can’t wait to become teenagers, and when we’re teens we’re eager to be grown up. I remember during my college years, the diploma and my career were the focus, but now I fondly recall many stops along that journey. I can’t remember the graduation ceremony, but countless hours on the tennis court, the friends I made, and campus romances remain firmly entrenched in my memory bank.

The pauses along the journey, when
we allow ourselves to catch our
breath and just "be," can provide
us with indelible memories.

I don’t think I did that badly as a dad for our young daughters, but now wish I could have ignored the press of deadlines more and took greater enjoyment in just watching them grow up. But I was building a career, looking to the future, and too often forgot to notice the present.

During my days as a magazine editor, the grind to get out the next edition was paramount, but the planning sessions during which I, the graphic designer, the cartoonist and other members of our editorial team argued and laughed – sometimes at the same time – are what stand out now.

Maybe that’s why Jesus tried to impress upon His followers they were too concerned about tomorrow: 

“But seek first (God’s) kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:33-34).

While the essence of Jesus’ teaching was to trust in God’s provision, He also was pointing out the importance of living in the moment rather than constantly scoping out the horizon.

Another time He told a parable about a wealthy farmer whose crops were so abundant he decided to build bigger barns for storing them. After the construction project was completed the rich man planned to assure himself, “’You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy, eat, drink and be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you’” (Luke 12:16-20).

Instead of appreciating the moment, the rich man kept preparing for a future that never arrived.

So what I need to do – and would encourage you to do as well – is become more cognizant of the present, keeping my eyes and ears open as I proceed along this earthly journey, recognizing the course I take is not happenstance, but part of God’s perfect plan for me, my family and people I encounter along the way.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Poet Robert Frost wrote about “The Road Not Taken,” closing with the lines:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

If we concentrate too intently on arriving at our destination, oblivious to what surrounds us along the journey, we could miss that road less traveled by, as Frost called it.

It does help to remain mindful that itinerary changes will occur and should be expected, and not to become annoyed when they do. There’s good reason behind them: “In his heart man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps” (Proverbs 16:9).

I need to make a stronger, more conscious effort to “consider the lilies of the field,” as Jesus said in Matthew 6:28. How about you?