Making Choices
But if any of you lack wisdom, you should pray to God, who will give it to you; because God gives generously to all. (James 1:5)
Getting Started
We make choices every day, some big, some small. Some are easy to make, and others are very difficult. What are some choices you make every day? What are some big choices you have made in your life?
Everyone wants to make the right choices. We want to choose the right job, the right friends, the right house, the right husband or wife. Sometimes it is very difficult to know which choice is best for us. Sometimes it is easy to know which choice is right, but we really want to choose what is wrong. Where can we go for some good advice? How can we have the wisdom to make good choices?
Improving Your Vocabulary
obey (v) – to do what someone commands or orders
curse (v) – to bring great pain or suffering on
witness (v) – to see something for oneself
last word (n phr) – the final word or decision
motive (n) – the reason or purpose for an action
humble (adj) – describes someone who is not proud or does not think that he is better than others
appoint (v) – to select or design for a specific task or positionendure (v) – to last a long time
Reading God’s Word
You may not know this, but the freedom to make choices comes from God! In the very beginning God gave Adam and Eve a choice to obey him or not to obey him. Today, God gives us the choice to accept him or not to accept him. He also gives us the choice to do what is right, or to do what is wrong.
Deuteronomy 30:19-20 19 I am now giving you the choice between life and death, between God's blessing and God's curse, and I call heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Choose life. 20 Love the Lord your God, obey him and be faithful to him, and then you and your descendants will live long in the land that he promised to give your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Proverbs 3:5-6
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Never rely on what you think you know. 6 Remember the Lord in everything you do, and he will show you the right way.
Proverbs 16:1-3;9 (Verse 3 is from the NIV)
1 We may make our plans, but God has the last word. 2 You may think everything you do is right, but the Lord judges your motives. 3 Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. 9 You may make your plans, but God directs your actions.
1 Peter 5:5-6
5" . . . God resists the proud, but shows favor to the humble. 6 Humble yourselves, then, under God's mighty hand, so that he will lift you up in his own good time. 7 Leave all your worries with him, because he cares for you.
Matthew 7:13-14
13"Go in through the narrow gate, because the gate to hell is wide and the road that leads to it is easy, and there are many who travel it. 14 But the gate to life is narrow and the way that leads to it is hard, and there are few people who find it.
John 15:16
You did not choose me; I chose you and appointed you to go and bear much fruit, the kind of fruit that endures.
Taking a Closer Look
1. What choice does God give us? (Deuteronomy 30:19)
2. Why do you think he gives us the freedom to choose?
3. Why shouldn’t we rely on our own knowledge?
4. What does it mean to “commit” our plans to the Lord? (Proverbs 16:3) Why do you think this is important?
5. If God has his own plan for us, can we still make our own choices?
6. Who does God resist? Who does he show favor to? (1 Peter 5:5) What are we told to do? (1 Peter 5:6)
7. Which gate should we choose to go through? (Matthew 7:13-14) Why do you think most people don’t choose this gate?
8. According to these Bible verses, what are some of the promises given to us if we choose God and his way?
9. What did God choose? What did he appoint us to do? (John 15:16)
Taking Action
1. God gives us freedom to make our own choices, but he warns us: “the Lord judges your motives.” What are some guidelines we can follow to make sure our motives are right?
2. If we have a choice to make, the Bible tells us the best thing we can do is to pray to God for wisdom. Think of the choices you will make next week, big and small. Why not pray about them? It can’t hurt!
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