So Many Choices to Make!

We went on a Christmas tree hunt yesterday. It was the first time for Danny and I to walk through a field of trees in search of the perfect one. It was hard. Our 6 year old grandson said he didn’t like it because there were so many choices. He said you pick one and then you see another one. You think you make the right choice and then you change your mind. He really did like it, but I understand. As a first timer I found that they all looked beautiful. But upon closer inspection there were flaws that didn’t meet our standards. We didn’t even know we had standards until we were met with the choices. Acres and acres of trees and still we wanted to look farther.  After the tree was cut we took it to the tree farmer who placed it on a shaking platform to get all the dead needles and debris out of the tree. That machine looked like it would tear the tree up, but it made it look much better. We were glad we didn’t take all the loose material home with us to shake out on our floor.

Blake was right – it was hard to make the final choice and stick with it. We did have a great time, but we laughed about the commitment to the tree – was it the right one? Didn’t we like the one on row 25 on the furthest acreage? On and on we all laughed.

We are a country full of people who have relished the many choices we have. Unlike other countries that have very little choices, we can even linger in decision making when it comes to simple things like the many brands and styles of cheeses, paper towels and band-aids. Simple things have become more complicated because of the choices.

Yet in spite of all these choices we still have a hard time making the commitment to live with our selection.  We are rich indeed in the fact that we can make our own choices about everything from Christmas trees to vocation. And yet for all our choices we still have a hard time making commitments to the choices. Satan knows our weakness so he subtly comes in with “a better idea” or gives us little hints of discontent in what we have. He’ll even send people into our lives to prove that we could have something better. We find ourselves either coveting another’s life or wishing our own perfectly good life away. We long to enter the field of choices and change what we have.

Just like looking at Christmas trees, we have to give our wants and wishes a thorough examination. What might appear as a great tree could have a very crooked trunk or a bad side without many limbs. So too we must look thoroughly at what our eyes relish to make sure we don’t end up with something we never really wanted in the first place. 

The only way a believer can make the right choice, the absolutely perfect choice in God’s estimation is to take everything to prayer and filter it through the shaking of the Word. Unless we are willing to give God the final choice, to let Him choose the best things for our lives, we will be destined to always look back and wonder if we could have done something better.  Without God’s guidance and waiting for Him to answer our prayers with His best we are destined to live without making a real commitment, even if we’ve made vows to complete what we started.

Oh beloved, run to God’s Word this morning and read: all that glitters isn’t gold and all that looks bright and promising isn’t always a good thing. But God speaks to our hearts and He always speaks the best things. Trust Him. Wait on Him. Then make your vows before Him and complete your commitments. Even when things look impossible or love grows cold or other things look better – in the light of God’s love for you and your commitment to Him first, you’ll find that what you already have is enough. You’ll also find that He gives His finest to His own. He can be trusted to make the right choices for you. Even when others make poor choices around you and you have to live with their decisions and their lack of commitment, God is committed to you always. He is so committed to your best and His glory that He will take care of you even when things go wrong. You’ll never be a victim as long as you put your trust in His choices. You can’t worry and wonder why when others make poor choices concerning your life, but you can rest in God’s promises for you no matter what.

Rejoice! Rejoice in your freedom to let God choose. Rejoice in His wonderful plan for your life. Rejoice that a Savior has come to make all things news and bless us with His marvelous plan of grace, faith and salvation. God loves you and He’s for you and that’s worth letting Him guide you into His wonderful choices for everything you will ever really need.

Proverbs 2:11 Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.

Jeremiah 39:18 Because you trusted Me, I will give you your life as a reward. I will rescue you and keep you safe. I, the Lord, have spoken.

Ephesians 3:17 Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.

Job 23:11 For I have stayed on God’s paths; I have followed His ways and not turned aside.

Psalm 18:30 God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to Him for protection.