Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Day 54: I Samuel 8-12

I am the daughter of a politician. Growing up, my dad was a state district judge, and a few years ago, he retired from being a judge and became a U.S. Congressman. With both of these jobs, he has made numerous speeches over the years, especially based on his experiences serving on the bench. He even came and spoke to my freshman at Baylor one year.

I have heard him give dozens of speeches, and the one thing he emphasizes most is the importance of making the right choices, of having the wisdom to make good decisions. He tells stories of people who have not made such good choices and about others who have. All in all, the point he's trying to make is about the importance of thinking about your actions.

We make a lot of choices each day. Some of them are small like what time we will wake up or what we will cook for dinner. Others are not so small. These decisions may be moral and ethical ones such as whether we want to cheat out our employers in some way, or how we want to behave. Other big decisions involve career moves, relocation, and what to teach our children about God.

Decision-making can be stressful. Change can be stressful. But how we deal with these decisions when they come up is what matters.

In I Samuel, Israel asks for a king. They beg Samuel to go to the Lord and plead their case. Samuel then goes to God, even though he doesn't think they should have a king. Like Samuel, God does not want them to have a king either because he is their king. Nevertheless, he gives them what they wants.

This decision to have a king forever changes Israel and their history. I think it also changes the relationship that Israel has with God. What I think is important here, though, is Samuel's decision-making process: when he was presented with a decision--a life-changing one--he went to God to ask God what he wanted them to do. He asked God for advice, and he talked to God about the decision.

Too often I am confronted with decisions and so often I waste my time trying to make this decision myself. Sure, I try to be wise about my decisions: I seek counsel; I talk to others who are impacted by my decision; I make lists. But I often forget or neglect to go to God and ask him for wisdom to make the right decision. Instead of doing that last (or not at all), I should go to God first. Sit in his presence and pray for wisdom and guidance that he will lead me to make the decision that follows his will.