Escaping The Plague Of Indecision

As we drove up to the card shop, I quickly briefed my husband, “I need a birthday card. Don’t shut the car off; I’ll be right back.”  Then, too many minutes later, I finally trudged out of the store with nothing to show for my efforts.  Not one card was just right.  Another time, I volunteered to provide snacks for a meeting.  “I’m taking snacks tomorrow.” I said. “What do you recommend?”  After several worthy suggestions, I still couldn’t decide between all the good options.  The day I was nearly late to work broke the proverbial last straw.  I changed my mind several times trying to decide which route suited me best.  At that point it hit me clearly…this scenario had to stop.  I needed to get rid of the plague of  indecision.

I prayed and decided to think critically about the circumstances surrounding all the times of indecision.  I looked for a common thread within each happening.  Lo and behold, I saw a rather revealing sameness in each situation.  I was somewhat surprised since it was not the first conclusion I would have suspected.  Still, I could see it was valid and I took the time to do some pondering.

Okay,  here’s the common thread tying together my specific scenarios: I wanted a certain outcome.  I believe that translates, in most languages, to “control”.  I wanted to control the outcome of my decisions when faith needed to be exercised since I could never know all the necessary, intricate details .  Would this card say just the right thing to bring encouragement to my friend? Which would she like better?  Would this snack make everyone say, “Why, you always bring the tastiest snacks!”  And, “Will I cross the path of my friend if I take this route?”  Only an omnipotent God can determine that type of outcome!  Proverbs 16:9 tells me that God can order and direct my steps if I will just relax and let Him have His way instead of trying to “create” my own scenario.  Since God is for me (Romans 8:31), I can trust He will work things out for my best interest.

I encourage you to take stock of the common thread in your times of repeated indecision.  Ask God to direct you.  Your thread of similarities may be different than mine, but you will have taken the first step toward a healthier decision-making process.  Once you see the similarities of the various scenarios, go to God’s word to see what direction He gives concerning your specific indecision trigger.  When we allow God to take control of our lives, we can rest assured that our decisions are directed by Him for the good of all involved (Proverbs 3:5-6).

May God bless your steps in shaking free of the plague of indecision.