Send Me! Your Journal to the Nations
Getting There - Step 6
Biblical “Road Signs”to Guide Your Decision-Making
Steve Hoke
Christian decision-making involves freedom and risk. Scripture teaches us to confirm God’s moral will (as revealed in the Bible) by following certain indicators - I call them “wisdom signs.” These signs are specific biblical ways the Holy Spirit guides us in our decision-making.
Types of Decisions
Christian decision-making can be divided into two categories. The first
involves areas that are specifically addressed in the Bible. These are
the revealed principles and commands of God, which must be obeyed. Those scriptural
guidelines - both exhortations and prohibitions - shape our lifestyles as believers.
The second category involves areas where the Bible gives no command or principle to follow. In these situations, it’s the believer’s responsibility to freely choose his or her own course of action within the boundaries of biblical guidelines.
Now, how do these apply to the specific decisions we face - which church to attend, for example, or which career to pursue, or whether we’re to marry and have children? Does God provide help for these life decisions beyond the general guidelines set forth in His Word?
We believe God is a personal and loving God - not a detached, aloof being. He invites us to know Him and tells us that He has counted the very hairs of our heads. Since He’s so personally involved in our lives, how, then, do we understand His mind for us when we face a specific decision?
Scripture describes the following seven “wisdom signs.” These indicators can help you discover and affirm the Lord’s will for your life.
1. Common sense. God created people with a natural ability to make sound judgments based on facts. It’s a form of wisdom that’s part of God’s grace to humans everywhere (Prov. 1:1-3; 3:5-6; 4:11).
When it comes to selecting a mission experience, common sense tells you to compare things like the mission organization’s purpose, programs, leaders, supervision, fields, and costs. It causes you to look at your own abilities, experiences, and spiritual gifts.
Common sense works as a “wisdom sign” as long as it harmonizes with the moral will of God and does not contradict what He has already revealed in Scripture.
2. Spiritual counsel. The book of Proverbs teaches that there is balance and wisdom in seeking the wise counsel of mature believers (Prov. 10:23; 15:22; 19:20; Heb. 13:7,8). These may include parents, close friends, teachers, pastors, or others in spiritual leadership. The Christian corrective to the extremes of individualism is the wisdom and support of the Christian community - the church - of which you are a member.
If the advice of certain counselors conflicts at points, evaluate the reasons behind their dif-fering viewpoints. Keep in mind the strong points of each type of counselor: Your parents probably know you best; teachers and professional counselors can help you uncover conceptual blind spots you’ve overlooked; pastors and other spiritual counselors can put facts and situations into proper spiritual perspective.
3. Personal desires. Spiritual growth makes a significant impact on your personal desires. The psalmist wrote that when you delight in the Lord, He gives you “the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4; Prov. 19:21; 21:21).
As you mature, your motives and desires often reflect God’s desires. But your personal desires are never authoritative and must always be judged against God’s Word.
When two options you are considering seem truly equal, this wisdom sign tells you to choose the one you would enjoy most - follow your heart!
4. Circumstances. The situation and context in which you will find yourself become vital ingredients in decision-making.
Carefully analyze your situation (Prov. 16:9, 33; 20:24). As you contemplate missions involvement, your situation will include factors like time, people, cost, travel, and so on. Every option has its advantages and disadvantages. Try to discern the more subtle consequences of your decisions.
Writing down an idea can be an antidote to emotionalizing your decision or becoming a victim of your own impulsiveness. Rather than looking at your circumstances to detect some hidden clue from God, use the pieces of your reality to help you make decisions.
5. Scripture. God’s moral will is objective, complete, and adequate as revealed in His Word. Yet the Bible does not tell us the precise answer to every situation. What it does tell us is to acquire wisdom and to apply it to our decisions (Prov. 6:20-23; 8:10-11, 32-33; 9:10).
We’ve all had ideas pop into our heads. Those inner impressions can come from a variety of sources - God, Satan, past experience, stress, the flesh, immaturity, indigestion, insomnia - and must be judged by God’s Word. After thoughtful consideration, you may conclude that an impression or feeling is actually a good plan - a wise way to serve God. Or you may decide it’s foolish and ought to be ignored.
6. Prayer. Prayer is your means of com-municating with God to understand His mind and His guidance. In most decisions, this is where the battle is fought (Eph. 6:18).
The time you spend thinking and gathering information about a decision should be matched with daily conversations in prayer. At times it helps to focus these prayers by writing them down. I have known people who agonize over major decisions, but spend less than five minutes a day praying about them. If you are trusting God as your loving Father, doesn’t it make sense that He is eager to answer your requests for wisdom through the intimate channel of prayer?
7. Previous experience. Life is a classroom, and you don’t want to return to second grade if you can help it! Be smart. Reflect on your past decisions - and those of others - to learn how they were good for you and how they were bad (Prov. 10:24; 21:1). Write down any critical deci-sions that influence where you now are and what options you have before you.
Romans 8:28 says that God is at work in every decision you make as a Christian committed to His will. This means that when you make the best decision possible, you can trust Him to work out the results for good.
A Worksheet
The Decision-Making
Worksheet can serve as a model of a “balance sheet” of the pros
and cons for each specific decision you’re facing.
It’s a simple, logical tool to help guide your thinking and reflection. By referring to the seven wisdom signs listed in the left column of the worksheet, you are seeking to listen to each of the major areas of guidance mentioned in Scripture in your decision-making process. Meanwhile, don’t forget that God has committed Himself to be at work in your deliberations for the ultimate purpose of His greater glory.
Personal Experience
When
facing a major decision, I start a separate worksheet for each option I’m
considering. I record the pros and cons as I carefully work through each wisdom
sign. This may take days or sometimes weeks. Some may see this as too mechanized
or lacking spontaneity, yet that same person will take weeks evaluating what
car or computer to purchase. So if it’s important, I think it’s worth
the effort.
I find the process is a discipline that helps me be more prayerful and careful. It doesn’t make it easier; it just makes the issues clearer. In every decision I’ve made since high school, it has clarified my need to wait on God. It doesn’t replace dependence; rather, it makes painfully obvious the areas in which I really am totally dependent upon the Lord.
Use the worksheet as a spiritual decision-making aid; it’s not a gimmick or a ouji board game. But if you’ve been confused by the number of options you face, and the details and issues seem to multiply, this tool is guaranteed to spotlight the wisdom factors you should consider.
As you take time to think and pray through what insight and wisdom you’ve gained from each wisdom sign, write down those insights in the appropriate column. When you’ve completed your “homework,” prayerfully, you may find that the sheer weight of wisdom for one option very clearly outweighs the pros or cons of another option. And that’s the purpose of the tool - to help you determine which option would be the wisest decision to make.
Peace. When the wisdom signs seem to point toward a particular choice, bathe your final decision in prayer. When you sense God’s peace about that option, you can be pretty sure it’s a wise decision (Col. 3:15). Let God’s peace be the final confirmation that you have made a wise decision, and move out confidently in obedience.
Note: You may want to make multiple copies of the worksheet to write on when you get ready to evaluate more than one option.
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Excerpt from Send Me! Your Journey to the Nations Copyright 1999, World Evangelical Alliance, all rights reserved, reprinted by permission. The entire Send Me! workbook may be purchased online at www.wearesources.org.
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