Making decisions is not an easy task. Sure, some will say that they have no problem making decisions. However, ‘decision quickness’ can have a dark side when it doesn’t consider a decision’s impact on others. Others will say that decisions just take time. By that they mean, there are so many factors to consider, as well as prayer to offer, that a decision just cannot be made rapidly.
We as cross cultural workers are, in particular, subject to a certain inertia when faced with decisions, small or large. We can ‘rush’ to a decision without seeking prayer and needed counsel. Or we can take such a long time to think about a decision that our ‘no decision’ becomes a decision. The time it takes to decide can cause the event or the God-given opportunity to pass us by because we waited so long to decide.
Granted, cross cultural ministry decisions involve both subjective and objectives elements. We see what is in front of us, but we also know that we rely on the Spirit of God to give us the wisdom and insight we need to discern the direction in which we should go. However, I wonder if the roots of our inertia are really more a lack of skill, and a strong desire to want to look good before others. To put it another way, we look to avoid the shame of having to take responsibility for our decisions.
Further skill training in decision making would be a good review for all of us; learning again how to prayerfully assess a situation and then create a process by which we can come to a decision. However, we must not forget the desire that strives within us to gain the acceptance of others. Our decision making process touches more on our character and heart than anything else.
A strong dose of a firm confidence in our faithful God and Father that no creature shall separate us from his love would be the start of a ‘treatment’ towards healing our hearts. This assurance would remind us that our honour is found in Him first, not in how others judge us based on our decisions.
As we move towards the start of 2017, I would challenge us as individuals, teams and a global community to learn how to better make decisions and how to speak the Gospel to one another in such a way that it actually has an effect on our daily lives.
Filed under: Decision making, Gospel, Planning, Prayer | 2 Comments »
rich in meaning for our daily lives. We could talk about His foresight, guidance or sovereign hand over all things happening in our lives and in this world. Yet, that ‘comfort’ needs to go much deeper into our heart so as to produce a change in how we live and act in light of this biblical reality.
his task. As part of the game, to start, we were each given four cards which we held in our hands. The information printed on the cards, however, could only be seen by others as our cards were turned outwards toward the group. Obviously, this made for a lot of fun (and confusion) as each of us had no idea of the cards we held in our hand. We needed the questions and input of others to discover what pieces of the larger ‘puzzle’ we held in our hands.
‘B.A.’ as friends used to say, that is, a bad attitude. Whatever the cause, unhappiness can be a sign that something has stepped between us and that which we prize more than anything else. In other words, something is blocking us from our idol and that makes us unhappy.
The rub in all this is that by failing to listen to others, we miss an opportunity to ‘grow up more into Christ who is our Head’.
writes: “and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith.” (1 Thessalonians 3:2). This is the same Timothy who was earlier called Paul’s ‘beloved and faithful child in the Lord (1 Corinthians 4:17). This Timothy, Paul’s fellow coworker, is now sent to minister to the church at Thessalonica.
Thoughts Along The Journey 