Devote #36

Sometimes it's not easy making decisions. We’re faced with difficult decisions all the time. I’m not talking about your garden variety type of decisions, like, “What should I wear today?” Or “Should I go golfing today?” I’m talking about those types of questions that keep you awake at night. The ones that demand an answer but have so many angles to them that you’re not sure if you’re coming or going. These are the types of questions that are heavy duty and probably effect a number of people.

So how do you make difficult decisions? Do you have a process that’s worked for you? What’s your process of elimination that helps you derive your answer?

I hope the answers to those questions come down to one single entity – God. Because if the truth were known, if you leave Him out of the equation, you’re going to be making a lot of bad decisions.

I thought of that today as I was reading the account of two women standing before young King Solomon – both arguing that their baby was the live baby.  Remember the story?

Two women lived in the same house. Both had just recently given birth, to I’m sure, beautiful babies. However during the night the one mother rolled over on her baby and accidently killed it. She then swapped her dead baby with the other womans live baby. When the second woman woke up in the morning, she realized two things… #1 – the baby lying next to her, was dead, and #2 – it wasn’t hers. So the two of them were found standing in front of a very young, inexperienced ruler, and it was there that they argued as to who’s baby was alive.

All three people in this account had to make a decision…

#1 – the first lady made a decision to steal and to lie. Her situation called for drastic measures in difficult times. This can happen to us as well when we take God out of the equation and make rash and hasty decisions.

#2 – the second lady made a decision to surrender at her own cost. When young King Solomon ordered the baby be cut in two and a half given to each lady, she no longer looked at her situation from her standpoint, but for the well-being of others. She reasoned that it would be better for her child to be alive and in the arms of another mother, than to be dead. That’s surrender.

#3 – don’t forget King Solomon. He made a truthful decision in a very difficult situation. But here’s the difference – he trusted God. His decision was to find the truth of love and he found it.

Here’s my word of encouragement for you today: You’re going to be faced with difficult decisions, so start with God and end with God. Look at life through His eyes and you’ll find that just as you could trust Him in the past – you can trust Him even now!

Father,
Help me in all my decisions today! In Jesus name, I pray, Amen.

Rev. Dr. MM Marxhausen