The three questions I always ask myself before making difficult choices
Decisions, decisions…
Many of us have struggled daily to know if we are making the right choices. You name it — what food to eat, what clothes will be our #OOTD, which route is fastest to work, what to share on our social media — we constantly make decisions, and there can be little time to assess the consequences of each and every option we have. In fact, UNC-TV Science (now PBS in North Carolina) states that we make about 35,000 decisions every single day!
So, how can we maximize our decision-making to get the best out of our lives?
Well, who better to seek help from than the best decision-maker there is? Our Almighty God!
Hitting rock-bottom (at 19)
Before I truly found God and became a member of the Church Of Christ, I had difficulty making this whirlpool of daily decisions on my own. This is because I did not have a foundation to base my decisions on.
Without such a foundation, this resulted in me relying on myself — my own, flawed intuition — to make choices based on the information I had at hand and my own feelings. However, this self-reliance quickly turned into bad decisions, and I found myself a college dropout, no money, losing my possessions, and utterly lost with no direction in life. Some might call this stage in life “rock bottom”, and I desperately wanted to change things around and anchor myself in a better way of thinking and living.
Shortly after hitting this trench in my life, I was introduced to the Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ). It was only here that my life began to make a 180.
One decision that changed my life
As I learned about this Church and who God truly is, I began to understand the reason why my prior life went to shambles — I needed God and to have the true faith. Being a member of the Church Of Christ means that with every decision I make in my life, I can seek the guidance and wisdom of our Almighty God through prayer and in worship services. I do not need to figure out everything on my own, because now I have the best help in determining the paths to take in my life. This was the foundation I have been searching for.
Now in making decisions, I ask myself a few questions that help greatly steer me in the right direction and plan God has for me:
1. If I am struggling to make a decision, the first thing I ask myself is, “Have you prayed about this yet?”
When I go to our Almighty God in prayer, I am able to release all my worries, fears, challenges, and unsure decisions to Him. In turn, God helps and guides me on which path to take and which decisions to make. This lets me feel a sense of security knowing that I am not facing challenges alone, but rather I am facing them head-on knowing the best outcome will be discovered.
2. “Which lesson or spiritual advice from the Bible can help me with my decision?”
God has granted us His word as a primary source of wisdom and knowledge to navigate the constant waves of life. As we are taught His words in the worship services, I continue to receive the exact inspiration I need in helping me make the right choices in life — which career to pursue, where to live, which partner to choose, and so much more. In all of these areas and more, He has helped me make thorough and proper decisions from hearing the spiritual advice coming from the Holy Scriptures.
In addition to the worship services, I have approached the ministers inside the Church Of Christ with questions wherein I have also received guidance each time on how God can steer my decisions.
3. “Will this glorify God?” Will my decision make God happy?
This is a big one… Answering this question not only guides me in the right direction, but it greatly prevents me from venturing down hundreds of wrong ones. For example, I was offered a job opportunity that would have paid well with plenty of hours and access to health benefits I needed, but I would have been required to work all weekend and not be able to attend worship services and perform my duties. Thus, I declined. How can such an offer be a blessing from God if it would hinder me from making Him first place in my life and glorify Him?
Surely, He would not be happy.
And making God happy means much more than any finite thing in this world.
As a member of the Church Of Christ, my purpose is to give glory to our Almighty God and live the way He wants me to. So if I make decisions that do not give Him glory, am I really doing the right thing? I don’t think so…
Even if I have a slight feeling the answer is “no”, I’ve found that it is best to ask myself the first two questions again to pray to God and seek His word for guidance. Not only has this helped me tremendously, but I can feel God’s favor and blessings in my life when I follow His commandments and let them guide my choices every day.
Start with the most important decision
From choosing a major to who to hang out with at a party and even to choices about finances or other parts of your life, decision-making can be daunting and difficult, especially when you want the very best for your life. However, what I’ve learned is that if you make the Almighty God your #1 priority and your foundation of guidance as a member of the Church Of Christ, you will find these decisions not only easier to make but lighter to do so.
I’ve been in the Church now for almost 5 years now, and when I think about how different it was to make decisions without God in my life, I’m reminded of how important it is to actively choose to put God first every single day. Believe me when I say making hard decisions gets so much easier when you do.
God helped me when I decided to move to another country to pursue my education, He helped me graduate with a degree in His plan versus the major I initially chose, and He helped me also find an incredible partner that has the same level of faith.
So, if you’re ready to experience this same peace in navigating your own challenges in life, the best decision you can make is becoming a member of the true Church Of Christ and putting God first in every part of your life.
It definitely was mine.
Want to learn more about the teachings taught in the Church Of Christ? Set up a time to talk to a minister of the gospel and ask about the Bible study course that finally brought Brian peace and guidance in his life.
