Recently I had to make a major life decision.
I agonised, planned stressed, and I agonised some more. I prayed, sought counsel, and did some more agonising. I was stuck in a kind of weird paralysis that I would get it wrong.
Guess what? I made the decision, I moved forward sure that I had it all figured out. I would love to say that it had a happy ending, everything was butterflies and roses, but actually I got it wrong. I made the wrong decision. I also discovered something. The world didn’t end because I made the wrong choice.
Life is Not Linear
I heard a speaker recently talking about how life is not linear. We don’t go from point A to point B in a straight line. It’s more like point A to point B in a series of zig zags. We course correct along the way. There is so much wisdom in that. Rather than obsessing about the decision to the point of not moving at all, perhaps it’s about making the best choice available. Take a step towards point B with an open mind that a course correction may be needed.
So what did getting it wrong for me actually mean? In this case, it meant eating some humble pie, walking back a work decision, and apologising profusely to some beautiful people. It also meant an opportunity for me to learn and grow as I analyse how I arrived at this point.
Talking at God or Listening to Him?
We were chatting in devotions this morning about listening to God. About really taking time out to hear what he is saying to us. It got me thinking about my recent choices and how much time I took to hear from God. I prayed about it, I spoke to wise people, I read the bible, I had a verse from God that I felt applied to the situation.
The problem was that I also spent a lot of time talking at God. So much time talking at him that I wasn’t really doing a lot of listening. I was so desperate for an answer that instead of waiting on him, I was running ahead making all the pieces fit. There is a difference between talking to God and talking at him. Solitude, silence, and reflection are all an important part of prayer. Sometimes we are so desperate to get it right we forget to take a minute to listen.
Getting it Wrong is Helpful
Getting it wrong in this case for me was actually really helpful. It gave me space to step outside of my work situation and see that I was completely overwhelmed. It allowed me to see, that despite my study of rest and it’s benefits, I was betraying myself and my team in the way I was working. If I was going to walk the decision back, I needed to make some serious adjustments. Sometimes when we get it wrong, it allows us to course correct in a radical way. We can realign our hearts with our purpose, set boundaries, and reset.
We can’t get every decision right all the time. The thought that we might get it wrong doesn’t have to be world ending or life paralysing. We can work on making the best choice possible once we have considered all the factors. It’s always possible to make a course correction if it’s not right. It might cost a little bit of pride and it might cost some time. Depending on the decision it may cost a little more than that. If we aren’t willing to step into areas that are uncomfortable we limit our chance to learn and grow.
Article supplied with thanks to Life FM in Adelaide.
Feature image: Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash