What Do I Do Now?
I have a problem.
There are times in life when there are more than one good choice to make and we have to decide what to do. How do we make that tough decision?
You have been given many different gifts and any little door opening in any of your gifted areas can be seen as an indication of the will of God in your life (Rowlings, p. 27). Sometimes what stands in the way of us discerning the will of God in our life is our own will. “When you are driven by what you want and what makes sense to you, it becomes an obstacle to discerning God’s Will” (Rowlings, p. 27).
Instead of trying to figure out what decision to make…DRAW CLOSE TO GOD. This is not a prayer of asking God what direction to take or what choice to make. This is a time to BE CLOSE TO HIM. In this time, it is important to TOTALLY SURRENDER YOUR HEART, DESIRES, DREAMS AND YOUR WILL TO GOD. Set aside what you want or think you want, your ambitions and dreams and just focus on being near to God. (Rowlings, p. 27) Basically, lay your choices on the altar and give them back to God. Be okay with walking away from the choices. To allow you the space to pursue God only.
Give your self-time, a week, two weeks. What ever you feel is needed to focus on only God instead of your decision. Do not use this time to search for answers. Rather, search for who God is and pursue a deeper friendship with him.
At the end of your time, get out paper. Label the top of each page your choices. One choice per page. On each page make, two columns one-labeled Pros and the other labeled Cons. Begin listing the pros and cons of each decision. When you finish filling out one page cover it up so it will not influence your thoughts about the next page/decision.
Because you just spent time digging into God he will guide you even if you do not feel any different. After you are done set the pages next to each other and see if anything new has been revealed to you in what direction you need to go. Make your decision and act in faith.
Rowlings in his book reminds us, (p. 208), “One last thing, when you make your decision, don’t waiver. Drive a stake in the ground. Go to someone you trust, a mentor, and tell them to help hold you accountable to your decision. Be prepared for your decision to be tested over an extended period of time. The enemy will come against you and try to get you to waiver. But believe that God has led you in this process and hold fast to what he says to you.”
Dallas Willard also shares his process when making tough decisions. He says to:
Ask for it
Watch for it
Ask for clarity if you do not understand
Give it time limits
If no answer, ask if there is anything that is preventing God from speaking to me
Keep asking for a answer
If still no answer
You need to make a decision on your own and have the confidence that God will be with you whatever your decision.
Being uncertain does not mean you do not have faith.
As you draw close to God, he will guide you.
I Corinthians 2:16 (NLT)
For, “who can know the Lord’s thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?” But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.
As your draw close to God, he will give you wisdom.
James 1:5-7 (NLT)
If you need wisdom, ask your generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is a unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
Rowlands, Alec. The Presence: Experiencing More of God. Tyndale Momentum, an Imprint of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2014.