The Power of Decision

The Power of Decision
by Annette Capps

http://charlescapps.com/ac_1st_qutr_05.html

Life is full of choices. Everyday we encounter countless opportunities to make small decisions and sometimes very important decisions. Occasionally, what may seem like a very insignificant choice makes the difference between tragedy and a life fulfilled. Your life today is the sum total of all the decisions you have made in your lifetime. Large and small, these decisions make up your beliefs, attitudes, and values. A decision to quit your job out of anger may have left you struggling to feed yourself. The decision to continue your education may have led to opportunities to secure a wonderful, well paying career.

Most of the time, we place great emphasis on those Big Decisions, when in reality it is the day to day choices of being steadfast in values that has led you to where you are today.

In Deuteronomy 30:19 (Amp) the Lord said, I call Heaven and earth to witness this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live;

Choosing life and blessing is not a one time choice; it is a choice you encounter in every decision. With every circumstance, there is a choice that leads to life. Even though you may not be able to discern which path leads to life, the Holy Spirit has been given to guide you into all truth. Every time you feel an impression of the Holy Spirit, you have the choice to act or not act on that impression.

Faith or Fear

Every decision you make is made either out of faith or out of fear. Now you may doubt this, but if you look at it a little closer, I believe you will agree. I have made many decisions in my life based upon avoidance. In other words, I chose to do something because it was the safest route. My motivation for deciding for one path was because I was afraid of the consequences of the other path. It was based upon what might happen. I was not fully persuaded that I was taking the path God wanted or even what I wanted, but the path that was reasonably the least likely to be problematic. Imagine what would have happened if Caleb and Joshua had used that logic! The other spies had decided it would be better for the children of Israel to stay where they were than to go after the blessing. It would take faith and hard work, but Caleb and Joshua’s motivation was faith that God was well able to go before them and prepare the way.

It is so very important to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, to pay attention to the promptings you feel in your spirit. Even if you make a mistake in your logic or reasoning, a decision made out of faith will lead to life and blessing! I like the confession my father makes based on Psalm 1:3, I am like a tree planted by the rivers of living water. I bring forth fruit in my season, my leaf shall not wither and whatever I do will prosper. God makes even my mistakes to prosper!

There is no decision that you have made that cannot be turned around by repenting and making choices in faith with the leading of the Holy Spirit. There are always consequences to any decision, but choosing life and blessing leads in the way of righteousness, peace, and joy.

Practical Decision Making

How do you make a good decision? If you are at a crossroads and are having difficulty seeing the right way or identifying the leading of the Holy Spirit, consider these two issues.

(1) You may not have enough information.
(2) There is a delay in the timing.

If possible, always gather as much information as possible about your choices. The quality of decision you make is tied to the amount of knowledge you have at the time, so arm yourself with as much knowledge as you can about the situation. Let’s say you are considering buying a house. You would want information about the price, the neighborhood, the structure of the house, if the title is clear and you might want to talk to the neighbors themselves. Very important is that you actually go on the property and see what it feels like. Do you have peace about it? If it seems that this is your dream house, but you feel somewhat uncomfortable about something, then dig for more information and wait.

Several years ago, I was in the process of leasing office space. It seemed like an ideal situation, but I didn’t feel totally peaceful about it. I waited and kept asking questions and after a week I found out that if I signed the sublease I would be responsible to pay for repairs made by the previous tenant. Those repairs amounted to several thousand dollars.

Timing is often something that must be considered. When I purchased my first home, the realtor was pushing for me to get financing secured immediately. I didn’t have peace about the process, so I delayed for a few days and the Holy Spirit directed me to someone who financed the house for 4% less than the current rate.

Examining Previous Decisions

We can all learn from our mistakes and it is often profitable to examine decisions that we made that resulted in unwanted results. A lesson for all of us, so called bad decisions can be helpful when we sincerely question what caused us to make that choice. Hopefully, we learn from our bad decisions and don’t make the same mistakes when we are 50 that we did when we were 20. Life experiences educate us with a wealth of knowledge about how the world works. When knowledge, wisdom, and experience have been added to your life, there will be great advantage in decision making.

You can re-evaluate and ask yourself, Why did I do that? As opposed to beating yourself over the head, ask:

Did I make that decision out of faith or fear?
What motivated me to choose this?
Is this a pattern I have repeated?

Cut yourself some slack if you are looking at a decision made years ago. Based on what you knew at the time, did you do the best you could? Would things have turned out differently if you had waited a little longer?

The wisdom of God can manifest in our lives many different ways, through the Word, by the Holy Spirit, a word spoken by a friend. It can also manifest by asking God to show us our mistakes clearly so that we can focus on making powerful decisions for our future. A continual series of small choosings shape our life daily. Through the guidance of the Spirit, we can make quality decisions based on the integrity of the Word of God.


Quotes:

Your life today is the sum total of all the decisions you have made in your lifetime.

Every decision you make is made either out of faith or out of fear.

The quality of decision you make is tied to the amount of knowledge you have at the time.