Making Decisions

September 2, 2008

My husband and I are opposites in many ways. For instance, his mind is on the future almost all the time, so much so that he is often not paying close attention to what he is doing right now. On the other hand, my mind is usually in the present and I think about what I am doing at the moment. If a decision need to be made about the future, I want to make that decision (will I go or stay home?), mark it on the calendar, and give it whatever attention is necessary, but be free to attend to the matters of today.

While his work sometimes requires my husband to put decisions on hold, I find that very difficult. If I know I must change or do something different a year from now, I am fine with waiting out the year, but I must decide today whether to say yes or no to the change. If in time that decision needs altering, I’m okay with that too. I just don’t like knowing I have to decide something and living with indecision.

This morning I’m reading about the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says He is coming again and His people need to be ready. That means being ready now—He could come tomorrow. I’ve heard some say that since it doesn’t appear likely that He is going to return, or going to return soon, they postpone readiness and carry on as usual. They think they can make a decision later in their life, or when it seems closer to the time it needs to be made. That makes no sense to me.

When Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonika, he was concerned that some of them thought Jesus had already returned and they missed it. This was a slightly different problem, but Paul’s explanation is helpful when it comes to making decisions about the future.

Paul told them that only those in spiritual darkness would “miss” what is going on. Since they were not in that category, this didn’t apply to them and they should not be so anxious. In 1 Thessalonians 5:4-10 he wrote:

But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.

These Christians had already made their decision and because of that, no matter what happened or when it happened, they were ready for it. My husband is with me on this one. We are ‘sons of light’ and know that Jesus will return. Whatever else happens and whenever He comes is not an issue.

The key element about making decisions for the future is that those decision affect what I do right now. For instance, if we decided that in three years we would move to a warmer climate, I would be spending the next three years clearing my house of stuff that we would not need and preparing for a new lifestyle. At the same time, I’d need to keep in mind that plans can change, and that I should not get rid of my winter coat just yet.

It is the same with the Second Coming. Jesus may not come in my lifetime. I could do as I please during that time because what I do didn’t save me, and what I do or don’t do will not condemn me, but because I love Jesus and do not want to disappoint Him, I’d rather be ready than not. That decision certainly affects my lifestyle.

Maybe this clarifies why people might say that He is never coming back. They don’t want to think that way. If they do, they face a decision that will affect how they live and they don’t want to change anything right now.

Someone once told me that there are no forks in the road. When we are called upon to make decisions, we are already “in” one of the decisions. That is, if I am sitting on the railroad tracks wondering if I should move my car or not, I’m already in the “or not” decision. In the same way, God says be ready for the Second Coming of His Son. If I just sat on that decision, I would be in the “not ready” category until I determined otherwise.

After reading these verse in 1 Thessalonians, I’m glad that God turned the light on for me. Decision-making is a lot easier because of Him. Being a Christian is practical. He says He is coming back, and even though I don’t know when, I want to be ready. Besides, I have learned that He will show me and help me live according to my choice.