05/25/2025
This morning, we are considering the decisions we make in our lives. Who makes our choices; are we making them based on our own logic and reasoning, or is God making them for us out of His perfect wisdom and understanding? Have we chosen to turn our lives over to the Lord, or are we still holding tight to the tiller of our lives and plotting our own course?
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”
Romans 8:28 ESV
To see an example of yielding to God versus maintaining control over our lives, we only have to look at this one Bible story... Abram and Lot had reached a point where their possessions were so great and the relationship between their herdsmen had deteriorated to the point where they had to separate. The elder and more affluent of the two was Abram, but he was also the most spiritual and led a godly life. When it came to choosing who would occupy which lands, Abram let Lot choose, and of course he chose the lushest and most advantageous lands... that is, if you looked at his decision using human logic. The land Lot chose was perfect for grazing but also contained the city of Sodom... and we all know the ungodly reputation of that city. Yet, this is precisely where Lot pitched his tent.
“Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent toward Sodom.”
Genesis 13:12 KJV
So, Abram chose to yield to Lot as God would have Him do, but on the other hand, Lot made his choice using his own logic and self-determination. Lot chose water and green pastures over the righteousness of the land. Looking at things through worldly eyes Lot thought that he was making the right decision, but so often what appears right to us as human beings is wrong when it comes to our faith or the will that God has for us.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV
Pastor Oswald Chambers spoke on this subject of allowing the Lord to steer our lives, and letting God make our decisions. Allowing God to make our decisions isn't a frivolous abdication of the right to choose, but rather we are allowing Him, in all His wisdom and goodness, to direct us. When we let Him choose, the outcome is always right. Listen to Pastor Chambers’s thought…
"God sometimes allows you to get into a place of testing where your own welfare would be the right and proper thing to consider if you were not living a life of faith; but if you are, you will joyfully waive your right and leave God to choose for you. This is the discipline by means of which the natural is transformed into the spiritual by obedience to the voice of God." - Oswald Chambers
So how are our lives being directed? Have we maintained control over every decision and laid out our own future direction, or have we asked God to take the wheel and guide us? The world would say that we are of an unsettled mind to let anyone other than ourselves control our lives, but then again, they don't know our God as we do.
“Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose. His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land.”
Psalms 25:12-13 ESV
Like most of us I have made choices in my life that proved to be wrong. I made them for all the right reasons... that is, if you used the world's method of determination. But, when I made decisions by asking the Lord what I should do, or looked at the teachings of Jesus before deciding, the outcome was always good. The direction God sent me in might have seemed wrong or contrary to conventional human reasoning at its inception, but in the end it was always proven to be what was best for me. I might have passed up opportunities for great wealth, but my righteousness and walk with Jesus was enhanced beyond my wildest dreams, and my life was peaceful and filled with joy. I might have walked away from what seemed to be a "good deal" only to find later that it wasn't what it seemed, and watched as the lives of those who made that choice were destroyed or their families broken apart by the very success that was achieved.
“My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.”
Proverbs 2:1-5 ESV
God knows the beginning from the end; from His vantage point He sees the snares ahead and the hidden pitfalls. God doesn't simply guide us to a better life... He is directing our paths towards Himself. In this way our moments of righteous choice will allow us to experience His joy and peace, but the first choice is always ours and ours alone… will we choose to place our Father in the pilothouse of our life? Will we choose to serve Him? Will we find rest in our souls... or continue on towards the rocky shoals ahead?
“Thus says the Lord: "Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk in it.””
Jeremiah 6:16 ESV
Prayer:
Father, thank you for guiding my life and steering me in your ways. Thank you, Lord, for directing my steps and leading me towards you... towards home. Holy Father, your will for me is paramount to a good and righteous life, and I trust in you to walk with me and turn me to the right and to the left as you see best, and in this way I feel your hand upon me. In this way, never let me slip from your hand Father. Never let my path stray from yours because I have taken back control of my walk. Lord, let me hear your voice always and obey it always... even when the world tells me that I am of unsettled mind, and making the wrong choice. In you there is never a wrong way to travel; you may lead me contrary to the reasoning of the world around me, but it is into a spirituality that this world can't understand, and this allows me to experience your peace, rest, and joy. Lead me on Father. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God who desires only goodness for me, and who loves me always. Holy are you who longs that I not only love you in return, but that I spend eternity with you. Help me to choose rightly Father so that I will remain righteous, holy, and in your presence forever. I pray that you hear the contrition in my voice as I ask for your forgiveness and seek your guidance. Feel the love for you that I harbor in my heart and soul as I cling to you more each day. Continue to command my life by choosing the right paths for me Abba and never let me question your reasoning or wisdom as you do so. For your perfect guidance and love I praise your name and worship you with every hallelujah and Amen.
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, and Amen!
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
Jerimiah 29:11 ESV
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”
James 1:17 ESV
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Psalm 23:6 ESV
Rich Forbes