How often do we encounter friends and family members who are asking themselves:
“What should I do?” “How can I make a decision that is according to God’s will?”
”How can I know what to do next?” They are confused in the face of uncertainty.
How are we to help them? With so much confusion, how can we make the right
decisions?
Some believe like Eliho. "Let us discern for ourselves what is right; let us
learn together what is good." (Job 34:4, NIV2)
Honestly, how often haven’t we tried to come up with the perfect solution
without good results? There are so many decisions! Life can be a real labyrinth,
enough to confuse anyone!
Still, according to Jesus, the answer is quite simple: "Ask and you will
receive, and your joy will be complete." (John 16:24b, NIV2) It’s
a solution that always works. However, given this pressure-cooker kind of life
that we lead, we usually can’t help but be impatient, and that impatience
becomes one of our deadliest enemies: “I want it now!” No wonder we make so many
wrong decisions.
Imagine finding yourself in a completely foreign country.
This is how we felt when we landed on Mackinac Island in Michigan. Even thought
this island is part of the United States, it seemed like we were definitely in a
foreign land, one that looked more like a carribean island than anything else.
There were no cars nor busses in sight, as these have all been banned. Instead
there were numerous bike rental places, as well as multiple horse trolleys. That
wasn’t too bad, in fact it was quite an innovative way to avoid pollution!
Except for what the horses left behind on the roads, that is . . .
In addition to the lack of motorized vehicles, we were also feeling out of our
element due to the vast number of tourists. I’m not sure we have ever seen so
many tourists in one place! We felt like sardines in the street, and it didn’t
take us long to become completely disoriented. We tried asking, but either they
ignored us, didn’t hear us, or answered us with a shrug. What should we do?
That’s when hope appeared: A tourist information bureau! Ask and you will
receive, but we still had to ask someone who knew the way.
I know of only One who can always guide us to the right decision. If we ask our
Heavenly Father, He will answer. Sometimes we don’t hear the answer right away,
and often this is because we aren’t ready for His answer. After all, why give an
answer that will only be ignored?
Too often we forget "I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for
you, who directs you in the way you should go." (Isa 48:17, NIV2) God has always our best interest at heart.
We can truly trust Him; however, He cannot reveal His answers if we are not
ready to follow His advice. This is why it is so important to wait upon Him with
an eager heart, willing to follow His advice, no matter what.
"But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." (Rom
8:25, NIV2)
"But as for me, I watch in hope for the LORD, I wait for God my Savior; my God
will hear me." (Mic 7:7, NIV2)
Do we truly believe this promise? Too often impatience will lead us to the wrong
decision; however, waiting on the Lord will lead us to a decision that we will
never regret. Unless, of course, we are dedicated to making our own decisions.
It’s at such times that we miss the opportunity to truly experience our Heavenly
Dad and His wisdom that is beyond understanding. He has our best interest at
heart, no doubt about it. We can truly trust Him and be assured that His answer
will always be the best decision for us. Waiting for His answer is worthwhile
and will keep us from making wrong decisions.
Now it’s up to us to decide if whether or not we will wait on our Father.
There is just one more more ingredient that needs to be part of this equation.
"When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you
may spend what you get on your pleasures." (Jas 4:3, NIV2)
What should we do next?
Wouldn't it be good for us to discover how to ask our Father for directions and know with certainty what His will is?
Till next time!
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.