Decisions without the Divine

One of the most significant things I can remember about my dad was how he would quote Proverb’s 3:5-6 at seemingly the most inopportune times. In reality his timing was impeccable. It probably seemed inopportune because at the time I was dancing in the shadow lands of folly.

Whenever we find ourselves in folly, words of wisdom tend to have a bitter-sweet taste.

After many years of seeking to live in wisdom and often failing, I still hear the voice of my dad speaking those ancient proverbs. Word’s like trust, heart and acknowledge are all common vernacular for anyone wishing to live and grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. And I’m no exception to that rule.

Yet how often do we make life decisions without the influence of the Divine? And I’m not omitting or ignoring the prevenient grace allotted to all mankind that tends to influence us toward a personal relationship with the Divine. What I am talking about are life choices outside of our salvation decision.

Decisions that may seem unimportant to God; like new tires, where to eat lunch, what to watch on TV or simply how to spend my time; seem way too trivial to even bother asking Him about. But therein MAY BE our biggest faith mistake.

Our heavenly Father really does care about everything we do (Matthew 6:26). And keeping that in perspective is a daily challenge, because we live in time, space and limitations, whereas He does not.

We are limited in our ability to manage things, He is not. And His desire to be involved in every detail of our life has nothing to do with His compulsive need to control, that simply does not exist. What He IS looking for, is relationship and fellowship that will provide for US what we CANNOT provide for ourselves or FIND in any other source.

I know that sounds kind of heady for a Sunday morning, but it’s really about how much He cares for us. It’s about a Father, a Brother and the Spirit who desire to infuse into our very lives, their best. That’s right; their best for us. And we will never get that measure of provision anywhere else, period.

Another problem is we are so accustom to Decisions without the Divine, that when the idea of His guidance and influence for our best are introduced to our daily living, it sounds intrusive and almost controlling (if not unbelievable). But any thought like that flows from minds yet to be fully regenerated. Our minds exist with the assumption of need and want. That is all we’ve ever experienced; but that IS NOT the case with the Divine.

When the idea of God wanting our trust and acknowledgement in EVERTHING we do (so as to guide us into His best) is introduced to hearts and minds like ours, we find that fact very hard to believe; even unbelievable, because we have rarely if ever known anyone to be so benevolent or a source to be so deep and inclusive.

Most of us don’t live with unlimited resources, therefore when the idea of a God who desires to give us unlimited access to unlimited resources is presented; it becomes WORK to accept such a prize for such undeserving wretches like us. Meaning we surely must have to DO something FOR that kind of prize.

Yet all of creation has been subjected to this type of frustrations only to push us in the direction of God’s benevolent grace (Romans 8:20).

My thinking unfolded like this today because I believe most of us live day in and day out giving little thought to the decisions we make. You may argue that point and that’s okay, but how many decisions is your brain making without first asking you?

There is so much happening within the cosmos and your very own body (all without your consent) that for anyone of us to presume we have much sway over our destiny would be mildly fallacious.

And YET that IS the very reason God says; trust Me, include Me, seek Me, call on Me. Life without your request for Divine influence gets out of control very fast; faster than you can say yesterday, today and forevermore (Hebrews 13:8). Albeit fast is relative to a life span of 70 plus years, but it’s still gone before you know it.

So why do I write? 1) To clear my head of synapse blockage. 2) To free my fingers from carpal tunnel cramps. 3) To prove my prowess with words. 4) To remind you that ALL decisions matter to God. 5) Or all of the above.

YOU DECIDE (pun intended). But keep in mind, there is a Divine Love that cares about even the smallest details of your existence. And that Love will only intervene in your life so far without a PERSONAL INVITATION.

Let’s not make too many decisions in our life without the Divine. Okay?

DISCLAIMER: Decisions by the Divine WILL NOT resemble decisions by we who are dust (Isaiah 55:8-9). So don’t be surprised by a mild sense of apprehension when learning to include the Divine in the dust of your decisions.