This is the way

Have you ever found yourself pinning over making a decision? Are you caught in-between two major decisions where either of those decisions seem very polarized? Do you feel torn between two good things? Do you feel like you are in this space where you are not where you want to be but cannot back to where you were?

Recently, I got offered two very different jobs and I could not decide which one to accept. One was in my field, something I was passionate about, but it was out of town. The other was not in my field but offered me the luxury of staying connected with my family and loved ones and I was torn. Which one do I accept? As I pinned over that decision, God led me to a book titled “Feel the fear and do it anyway”. In this book, I learned that when it comes to choosing between two (or more) good things, there is no right or wrong decision, just different ones. What? Let me explain:

Each experience has valuable lessons to be learned. If you choose Path A you will learn one set of lessons and if you choose path B you’ll learn a different set of lessons. Each path has goodies to offer such as the opportunity to experience life in a new way, the opportunity to learn and grow, and the opportunity to come out of your comfort zone to try something new. There is no right or wrong path just different paths (remember I am talking about choosing between two good things- not between right and morally depraved). The author calls this the No-Lose model in her book.

The words from this book sank down into my spirit and really helped to focus me as I picked one of those job offers. Even though over the past weeks of making the decision, I have been trying to convince myself that there was no right or wrong choice, I have had a nagging in the back of my mind if I chose right. As I pondered over my choice, a scripture got illuminated in my heart:

And whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it”

Isaiah 30: 21 NIV

Even though the author of this book did not offer any Christian perspective to her No-Lose model, I think she was on to something. Many times in the throes of decision- making, I forget God directs my path towards an expected end. I agree with the author that are no wrong paths: God orders our steps whether it is to the left or the right and He goes ahead of us and lines the path for us with goodies. His goodness and mercies follow us as we walk the down the paths of our decisions. And if we continue to trust in Him, everything along that path will work together for our good and for His glory. In my limited mind, I see one path with one set of possibilities and another path with another set of possibilities. However, God sees the outcomes of my decisions (even as far as the end of my days) and He is able to bring me to that outcome regardless of whatever path I take. The key is to hear His voice saying, “this is the way, walk in it.” As long as I stay tuned to His voice, it does not matter whether I take Path A or Path B. I will come to God’s expected end. His hand will guide me and His eye will watch over me till I get where I need to be.

As I stay connected to Him, I will begin to recognize His voice when it directs me. As I lean more into God, I will stop second guessing His voice because I will recognize it right away. I am reminded of using my GPS in my car particularly when I do not know where I am going. I am usually more focused on the GPS lady’s voice than even the route I am taking. As long as I follow the GPS’ promptings I trust I will get where I need to be and that’s exactly what this scripture looks like for me. As I start to listen more for God’s voice saying, “this is the way”, I would get less concerned with the actual route I am taking. The bottom line is that God has got your back.

Yours Truly.

Advent Calendar day 12: Heavenly Citizenship

Have you ever heard a song and felt so drawn to it? It is an almost unexplainable phenomenon. There is something ethereal that strikes a cord deep within you and draws you in… you feel the weight of each note even though they possess a delicate quality to them… Well… like I said very unexplainable phenomenon and for many years I have tried to understand this. In today’s reading, a scripture caught my eye which gave me a tiny glimpse into understanding that phenomenon.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet  no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIV

That call I experience when I listen to hymns and other spiritual songs is the sound of home. We are all citizens of heaven. Everyone from every nation, tribe or tongue on earth shares one citizenship: a heavenly one and many times that very nature calls to us. Some experience it in music, some in nature, some through human connectedness etc.

But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.

Philippians 3: 20-21

And while we are here on earth, we all at one point feel this call of eternity which God has set in each of our hearts. It is like a beacon that reminds us that we have another home and God makes it easy for us to find our way back home. This is through Jesus His Only son who himself is the WAY back to God and back home.

For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature–have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

Romans 1:19-20 NLT, NIV

So next time you walk through nature, or listen to a song or feel this connectedness to something bigger than yourself- something that calls to your very soul, remember God has placed eternity in your heart to encourage you that a home beyond this one.

Yours Truly