Decisions

Decision making can be regarded as the cognitive process resulting in the selection of a belief or a course of action.

Decision making can also be regarded as the thought process of selecting a logical choice from the available options. When trying to make a good decision, a person must weigh the positive and the negative aspects of each option, and consider the entire alternative. For effective decision making, a person must be able to forecast the outcome of each option as well. And based on all these items, determine which option is the best for that particular situation.

Deuteronomy 30:19-20 (The Message, MSG):

I call Heaven and Earth to witness against you today: I place before you Life and Death, Blessing and Curse. Choose life so that you and your children will live.

And love God, your God, listening obediently to him, firmly embracing him. Oh yes, he is life itself, a long life settled on the soil that God, your God, promised to give your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Here Jesus is telling us that we have a choice to make, and whichever decision we make will give us life or death. And then he urges us to choose life.

The definition of urge here is to try earnestly to persuade someone to do something.

Here in the margin of The Message translation of the Bible, Deuteronomy 30:15, the word has an urgency which means "importance, requiring swift action." The Bible says, here is what will happen. While you're out among the nations where God has dispersed you, and the blessings and curses come in just the way I have set them before you, and you and your children take them seriously and come back to God, your God, and obey him with your whole heart and soul according to everything that I command you today, then God, your God, will restore everything you lost. He'll have compassion for you. He'll come back and pick up the pieces from all the places where you were scattered. No matter how far away you end up, God will get you out of there and bring you back to the land your ancestors once possessed. It will be yours again. He will give you a good life, and make you more numerous than your ancestors.

Deuteronomy 30:6-7 says "God, your God, will cut away the calluses on your heart and your children's hearts, freeing you to love God, your God, with your whole heart and soul and live, really live. God, your God, will put all these curses on your enemies who hated you and were out to get you."

Deuteronomy 30:8-9 continues, "And you will make a new start, listening obediently to God, keeping all his commandments that I'm commanding you today. God, your God, will outdo himself in making things go well for you: you'll have babies, gets calves, grow crops, and enjoy an all-around good life. Yes, God will start enjoying you again, making things go well for you just as he enjoyed doing it for your ancestors."

In Deuteronomy 30:15 Moses says, "Look at what I've done for you today: I've place in front of you Life and Good, Death and Evil."

For a brief history on Moses, we can look at Hebrews 11:23-28. When Moses was born, he was hidden by his parents, because they were afraid of the new king of Egypt's commandment of death to the infants of the Israelites. He was later rescued by Pharaoh's daughter. But as he grew older, he refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He chose instead to suffer affliction with the people of God, his people, rather than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season.

As we know, Moses had to make a decision. He was not concerned about the consequences of his decision of choosing to suffer affliction with the people of God rather than enjoying pleasure for a season. Moses knew that sometimes you have to lose to win in the end. There are times when I knew that some decisions I made were going to have painful consequences, but I had to step out in faith and just trust God. You might ask if it was hard waiting on the results and the answer is yes. You see, great victory comes with great sacrifice.

Emotional Decisions

Emotional decisions are made when people are under pressure, so often a person's reasoning are camouflaged, and it hinders them from thinking logically. And ultimately, they make the wrong decision.

Some time ago, a client of mine made an emotional decision. Her husband was out of work, and as far as I know, most of the places he applied for work told him he was overqualified. After counseling her, it was noted that she was having a battle in her mind; something was telling her to divorce her husband. I told her she was making a bad emotional decision. Her fear was that she needed to live a certain life style, a lifestyle of looking good on the outside, but having a war on the inside. She had a life of keeping up with the Jones' so to speak.

A couple of weeks passed by, she came into my office and asked me if I noticed anything different. I looked at her carefully, and making sure I didn't say the wrong thing, I gave her a compliment on her dress, which was very colorful. But then she put her hand in front of me. I still was not sure what she was implying. To keep me out of suspense, she said, "My wedding ring is gone." I apologized for not having the same excitement she had. I told her all the reasons why she should rethink her decision, but to no avail. Her mind was made up.

I pointed out the fact that her husband was a well-respected man and well educated. She admitted he had always treated her well and took care of her.

I gave her some Bible Scriptures to read. One Scripture is found in the Book of Proverbs 14, which essentially says that a wise woman builds her home, but a fool will tear it down. It was clear that she was dancing to the rhythm no one is going to tell me what to do.

I tell husbands and wives that if there is a problem that arrives in their marriage, they should never go to bed angry with one another. Do whatever it take to make up.

Decisions that are made when a person is emotional can be very crucial. These decisions can hurt the person making them, and can hurt the people who are involved. I find that often when decisions are arrived in times such as these, there has been a lack of communication. And where there is no communication in a family there is confusion, and no time spent with God. Scripture says that he who keeps his mind on the Lord, he will keep them in perfect peace. As Christians, we must set the example when it comes to having control over our emotions. It is the expectation of the ones we are leading. The world expects us to be like Jesus, no matter what happens. The world is looking and waiting to say I told you so.

As believers in Christ, we have been adopted into a royal priesthood, holy and acceptable unto God. We are bought with a price. We are not our own. Therefore, we must conduct ourselves as becoming to believers in Jesus. I am stressing this subject because this area is where the enemy tries to control. He knows if he can get control of our emotions, he can lead us to destruction.

I liken the enemy to the paparazzi; one who lurk around, looking for fault and taking pictures of the saints when they fall because they are a busybody. The devil knows and understands that when we say we have been adopted into the Royal Priesthood, our behavior should be of a meek and quiet spirit. He is waiting and watching to make his report. The enemy wants to catch us drunk or in the night club, or catch us dressing inappropriately. In today's society, take the Queen, for example. She has a certain dress style. You know her by her dignity and her dress style. I hear people say, oh it's okay, a person can dress however they feel. Well, I don't agree with that, because if I dress how I feel ... sometimes, especially when it's hot ... I might be arrested, if you know what I mean! That is just a little humor, but getting back to the point; as Royal People we are governed to behave in a godly manner. As I said earlier, a man who can't control his temper is like a city without walls.

Radical Thinking Decisions

What is it that defines your character? Character is that thing that introduces a man or woman to him or herself. The question to ask is how well do we respond under pressure? What kind of decision does one make under pressure?

For instance, the decision we make takes on our character. A person who is an alcoholic drinks because he does not want to face certain decisions he or she has made. It is easier for him to drink as opposed to rational thinking.

Ironically, the consequences of this may lead to his demise, especially if he doesn't seek help. Sometimes our problems really let us know what we are made of.

Here is another example for rational thinking. Get alone, by yourself, and write on a piece of paper some goals for yourself. An example is, if you are a person who gambles and you are in business, you must make a conscious effort to control your habit. Admit to yourself, "I am out of control. I must stop." Or seek guidance in this area. The only way a person's life can change for the better is, they first have to admit that they have a problem. Then they find a course of action to get them back on course.

It is crucial that parents use rational thinking when it comes to raising their children and taking care of the household, because it is so easy to be pushed into doing things because of peer pressure in this day and age. Giving in to too much pressure can cause problems in the home, such as everyone being on edge, or no one talking to each other.

I believe that the head of the house should always put prayer as a source for getting the help they need to keep their family together. For without prayer, we are like a ship without a sail, tossed to and fro.

Isaiah 26:3 (King James Version, KJV) says "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." Keeping your mind on the Lord avoids the danger of making a bad decision, because God said he would never leave us nor forsake us. That means that he is there in those moments when decision is needed.

Esther 4:1-17, Esther needed to make a decision. She had to risk her life to see the king without an appointment in order to beg for her peoples' lives. She knew that the odds were against her, but she knew they were equally against her if she did not see the king. She made a decision, and was successful.

In today's society, we must be absolutely sure that Jesus is our foundation. It is necessary that we have totally committed our life to Jesus and stand for what is right. There will come a time that you will have to make a decision when people try to make you afraid to acknowledge our Lord Jesus Christ.

They may try to intimidate you after some catastrophe by saying, where is the God you always talk about?

If things seem to get a little rough, for instance, losing a job can be very stressful, especially if you have a family to support; this is when the enemy may offer you a quick way to make some illegal money. This is the time when you must make a decision to trust God. In 2 Timothy 1:7 (Amplified Bible, AMP) we read, "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity (of cowardice, of craven and cringing and fawning fear), but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of calm and well-balanced mind and discipline and self-control."

There were many times in my walk of life as a Christian when I had to make decisions. I preached messages to a lot of preachers who were afraid to preach, or didn't preach for one reason or another; messages such as be careful to avoid back-biting, or talking about one another, or not speaking to people in the church. I watched some members of the church go another way just to keep from shaking a sister or brother's hand out of resentment. And grudges will keep the blessings away. These are choices, that will cause sickness, and sometime even death. I say let it go so you can grow. I have witnessed family members stop speaking to one another over things so small as not buying a Christmas gift. And I have preached at some funeral where folks went to their grave not making it right with the person they had issues with. What a sad situation. But again, these are choices. You can choose to change, so why not change before it is too late? I tell people why wait until you get sick and close to death, and then you want to ask, saying, "I'm like Job; blameless and upright." But in reality you don't even speak to your mother or father; you are hateful and mean. How dare you compare yourself to Job? Our God is a forgiving God; he gives us every opportunity to come to him and get it right. But we walk around like we are holier than thou. And we don't make the decision to give our problems to Jesus, the one who can wash us whiter than snow. In Matthew 7:7 Jesus said if anyone stands at the door and knocks, I will let him in. He is not going to break the door down; it is our decision. It is all up to the individual. In the early part of my ministry I was offered millions of dollars to make a movie; I had to make a radical decision and turn it down. Mark 8:36 (New King James Version NKJV) says, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" You may ask, is something wrong with making a movie? It depends on what kind of movie it is. In my case, the movie they wanted me to make was portraying a drug dealer. Even though the money was needed for my church, I had to make a quality, rational decision to turn it down. As pastors we must lead by example. God is holding us responsible for the life we live, because we represent him. We're supposed to be like a child that always wants to please his father. I had to make a radical decision to walk away from the million-dollar deal and I never looked back. I came to my church and raised thirty-five dollars, but that was the sweetest thirty five dollars I ever raised.

I must add that once a person accepts Christ into their lives, a radical change takes place. You are not the same person. The way you think is radical; your conversation is radical. Your behavior is not the same. It is impossible for Jesus to come into your life and you stay the same. You become a hater of what is evil and a lover of what is good. I am a radical preacher, and I preach a radical word. The Word of God says it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:13 English Standard Version, ESV). I don't compromise with the devil; I see him for what he is. He is a deceiver and the father of lies. As Christians, we must not allow worldly goods, possessions or wealth to misguide us or cloud our judgment. When it is time to make a radical decision in regards to our salvation, Satan is a character assassinator. He wants to strip you of your honor and take your crown (Job 19:9).

The only way for you to have total victory over Satan is you must make a radical decision to surrender all to Jesus. "Surrender all" means surrender your body, surrender your will, surrender your soul and mind. Matthew 22:37 (KJV) says "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind."

Submission is another radical quality, meaning the state of being willing to carry out the wishes of another. In 3 John 1:2 (AMP) we read: "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in every way and [that your body] may keep well, even as [I know] your soul keeps well and prospers."

As a pastor, I often have members come to me for guidance. But when I tell them what they must do to get to the place in God to get delivered from whatever that is hindering them, they are not willing to go all the way. If you are still lying, cursing, drinking and hanging out with your friends who are partying and fornicating, you won't get your deliverance until you are willing to make a radical decision to give it all up and totally surrender all to God.

It has been said that our friends today show us who we will be tomorrow. In 1 Corinthians 15:33 it says "Do not be so deceived and misled! Evil companionships (communion, associations) corrupt and deprave good manners and morals and character."

What this scripture is saying is that it is impossible to be with bad company and not be affected by it. You were told don't be misled; that's thinking you can hang out with the lust and all this world has to offer you and not be contaminated.

In my closing on this chapter, I am going to use a motivational passage from the first man to fly faster than the speed of sound. He broke the sound barrier. When he landed on the ground, the news reporter asked him what he had to say. In his words he said that just before he broke the sound barrier that was when the cockpit shook the most. So how does this passage relate to making a radical decision? In my opinion and my experience, I recall that during that time when I had to make a radical decision, I prayed more and I fasted more, because it is a dangerous thing to make any decision without truly pulling yourself away from the crowd and going into that secret place where we meet God in fasting and prayer, especially when you are leading a congregation.