Ten Principles for Making Decisions

Decisions. We all make them. We have to. It’s part of life.

Some decisions are easier than others. Some decisions really have no consequence at all. While other decisions we make have a way of impacting our lives. For instance, a few months ago, Rachel and I made an unplanned stop in Chicago for a few hours. It was a nice day; the weather was perfect, so we decided to walk and enjoy the city life for a little while. Shortly into our little adventure I realized that I had made a very bad decision that morning. I had chosen to wear the wrong pair of shoes that day. Now, don’t get me wrong. The shoes looked good; they were very fashionable. They were actually new. I hadn’t worn them but one time previously. The reason they were a bad decision was that they had begun to rub a blister on the back of my left ankle, and it was highly annoying. It was uncomfortable. To make it worse, the blister lingered for a couple of weeks before it healed fully. All of that from one minor decision. That one decision negatively affected the next several days. It actually made me make other decisions over the next few weeks as to what shoes I would wear as to not affect the wound caused by the previous bad decision.

When you think about it, our spiritual lives are not much different than a simple decision about what shoes to wear. What may seem like a simple decision can affect a few weeks, a few years, or even the remainder of our lives. A decision about how to respond to a text message can change friendships for weeks. A decision on whether or not to respond to a private message from an old flame from the past could quite possibly change the rest of your life for the negative. A decision to not read your Bible today may not have a huge effect on the rest of your life, but if you make that same decision every day for months on end it will most definitely have a long term effect on your spiritual life. We must take the time and make decisions that would be the most effective for us to live the way God would want us to live.

I came across this list of Ten Principles on Making a Decision the other day that I first copied down August 25th, 2002. It has been a help to me over the years when I come across it from time to time. I hope it will give you some direction that will be a similar help to you as you face the decisions that you must make for yourself.

Ten Principles on Making a Decision:

1. Never make a decision based on feelings alone.
2. Wait before making a decision – Give it some time if you can.
3. Make the decision based on Biblical principles and values when applicable.
4. Consider the decision in light of this question: “will it bring Glory to the Lord?”
5. Find out what the Bible says before making the decision.
6. Research the matter as much as possible before making the decision.
7. Count the full cost before making the decision. Because every decision has a cost.
8. Have a list of counselors that help you make decisions.
9. Never make a decision that will pull you away from God.
10. Once a good decision has been made, don’t reverse the decision.

Keep moving forward.

Pastor Aaron Smith