Journey Of Faith Blog

The Rat Race is no place to slow down, relax, and have fun. There is always one more task to accomplish, one more job to do, one more committee to guide, and one more compulsion to fulfill. People caught in the Rat Race see fun as being counterproductive. They believe that no one gets anywhere in life by relaxing. Fun is at the bottom of the priorities because it demonstrates one’s inability to enjoy work and excel. People who are caught in the Rat Race inevitably get very tired, but they have so fooled themselves that they see exhaustion as a badge of honor: “Look how hard I’m working. What a good person I am to sacrifice this way for those I love.” Their self-esteem gets massaged along with their tired feet, and their aching back and neck. This warning sign leaves little space for fun, inspirational reading, physical exercise, prayer, hobbies, or anything else which hints at veering away from the day’s priorities.

Consider the following statements. The more “yes” answers you get, the less healthy fun you are allowing yourself to have.

1. No one gets anywhere in life by relaxing.

2. Even when I have time, I’m too tired to do anything fun or relaxing.

3. My state of exhaustion makes me feel that I am worthwhile.

4. My work is more important than my own personal comfort or desires.

5. When I rest, I feel guilty.

6. I never feel that I accomplish enough, even though I am exhausted all the time from the long hours I put in.

7. I don’t think that taking time off to have fun would relieve my stress.

8. Laughter should not be part of the workplace.

9. I often have work with me when I eat a meal.

10. I take a “To Do” list with me on vacations.

Have you ever noticed that some people seem to have an easier time making decisions than others? If they make a mistake, their world doesn’t fall apart. They would rather do something wrong than to do nothing at all. Other people have trouble looking at a menu and choosing what they want to eat for one meal. These are the ones who get caught in the Rat Race of indecisiveness.

Make Better Decisions

Because we are human beings, we have a great potential for error. We wait too long; we pay too much; and we will make wrong decisions. In order for us to enjoy life the way God intended, we need to examine some of the principles outlined in Scripture for decision making. There is no clear cut formula in the Bible because there are so many different types of decisions. But God gives us distinct principles that can make the decision making process much simpler.

Principle #1 – Request wisdom from God. I have found that when people face confusion in their lives, they react in one of three ways. 1) They may panic. They are not sure which way to turn or which choice to make. Life becomes a series of anxiety attacks. 2) Some people will ponder. Many find relief in never making a decision. They do not want to face life; they just want to think about it. These are the people who hope the problem will just go away. 3) A third option is to pray. James, the brother of the Lord Jesus Christ, wrote, “If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5). God Himself tells us that the wisest thing we can do is to ask Him for wisdom.

Principle #2 – Rely on God’s provision. In James 1, we read, “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt….” In other words, expect an answer. Trust that God did hear your request; now rely on His provision.

It appears in the decision making process that first we must ask the right person – God -- then we must ask in the right way -- in faith, believing and not doubting. “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). Evidently, if you are to receive anything from God, you have to believe in advance that you are going to get it. That’s faith!

Principle #3 – Rest in your decision. James moves us beyond doubt, saying, “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does” (James 1:6-8).

Principle #4 – Relate to the facts, not your feelings. Feelings are a major part of life. We need them, but we cannot always rely on them. The best piece of advice I have ever received goes like this: Never make a major decision when you are tired, depressed, sick, or emotionally stressed. As a pastor, I will never make a major decision on Monday. If pastors lived their lives solely on emotions, most of us would resign on Monday. It is hard to be logical when you are emotionally spent or upset. So you shouldn’t walk out of your marriage when you’re depressed. You should never change jobs because your boss is angry with you. You must first look at the emotions and examine the facts. Ask God, then make the decision.

Principle #5 – Re-establish your life on the Bible. James 1:22-25 reminds us, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it -- he will be blessed in what he does.”

Do you really want the wisdom of God in your life? Then you will need the Word of God in your heart. I hear people say all the time, “I asked for wisdom to make this decision, and I didn’t get it.” What I would ask these people is, “How often do you read your Bible?” I have discovered two important guidelines concerning God’s will for our lives. First, God’s will is found in God’s Word. If you are not reading your Bible, you will not discover God’s will for your life. Second, God’s will is never contrary to God’s Word. Many have asked, “How can it be so wrong, when it feels so right?” I’ll tell you why. Feelings are unreliable. It’s not enough to go to church on Sunday, anticipating that you will receive enough spiritual nourishment for the remainder of the week. You will forget the majority of what you hear anyway. How can we retain what we hear?

James 1:22-24 provides three tools we can use to hold onto God’s Word longer and thus provide a firmer foundation for the decision making process:

Study the Bible. By the one who “looks intently into the perfect law.” Get into a Bible study, join a small group, do whatever it takes to get into the Bible and it into you. Memorize the Bible. No, not the entire Bible, but portions of it which will revolutionize your life. Be the one who continues to do this, “not forgetting what he has heard.” Do what you learn in the Bible. Be the one who does what he hears -- “he will be blessed in what he does.” Follow the Bible, put it into practice, and trust that it will truly change your life.

Making decisions is an important part of climbing out of the Rat Race and back into God’s Royal Race. He will not make all of your decisions for you. He has given us the freedom to decide. He does, however, desire your decisions be based upon His wisdom. We are told in Psalm 119:105 that “Your [God’s] word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” In Jesus’ day, they didn’t have flashlights with batteries that keep on going and going. So how did the people walk in the dark? They had tiny lamps that would not allow the oil to slosh out. They would light the lamps, and then strap them to the front of their shoes. As they took each step, the light would shine just far enough ahead so they would be able to keep walking. The Bible is this kind of light. It is not a high beam that shows us everything that will happen up ahead over the next ten years. God doesn’t want us looking that far ahead because we’d panic. He wants us to live one day at a time. One decision at a time -- and He has promised to give us the wisdom necessary for each step we take.

On the journey with you,

Pastor Glen