Decision-Making Strategies
By Margaret D. Mitchell
Week of May 14, 2023
God can turn our lives around when we earnestly repent, which means to turn back to Him. And no one is too far gone.
God can regenerate dead things. We were dead in our sin, but He came down and rescued us through Jesus (Colossians 2:13).
Jesus even revived Lazarus, who was dead (John 11:43-44). And when He did, He restored all of life to him, including his relationships. Jesus brought those close to Lazarus to a new level of gratitude and awe. And He expanded their evangelical outreach.
Very recently, Holy Spirit revealed to me that He’s about to do some Lazarus revivals in people’s lives. As we continue to depend upon God, many will witness His miraculous hand bringing dead things to life again.
God has positioned us before some amazing new beginnings, so it’s important to make wise choices. Our willingness and decisions that align with Him help facilitate His strategies.
However, for anyone who thinks they can just live irresponsibly and God will erase the effects of their poor decisions by His grace, they are unaware of God’s law of reciprocity. God’s truth is that we reap what we sow.
Yes, when our beliefs and actions oppose God’s way, they will also return upon our own heads. When this happens, we can turn to God and He will be there to restore us. But perhaps you’ve figured out that God’s restoration often takes decades. So, who would want to live a messed-up life this long?
I’ve viewed countless videos and shows where guests talk about lousy decisions they’ve made and how God redeemed their lives over time; but not once have I heard any of them specifically say that they brought their consequences on themselves.
This is a blow to the ego to even consider that we brought "it" on ourselves. And that’s the whole point: The truth of humility breaks false pride—the same kind of pride that caused Heaven’s most glorious angel, Lucifer, to fall.
So, when we make ungodly decisions, we cannot point a finger at anyone else, lest we memorialize ourselves as victims, the very opposite of victorious. What we do to other people comes back to us. In this way, we can perpetuate a victim cycle of our own doing in our own lives.
Do you see how desperately in need of Jesus we are? And at some point, we must awaken to who and what our God is and intentionally commit to Him and His ways consistently.
I recall a time in my own life, many years ago, when I was experiencing a long, dark night of the soul season. I asked God what was at the root of it all. He revealed a few specific actions in a previous season that brought heaviness into my then current season. I listened to His still, small voice, as He clearly listed a few root causes to me, one by one. And I understood Him perfectly.
Yes, I repented of each sinful cause, but God’s restoration for me was slow, deep and consistent over time. He knows how to correct and restore lasting character in us, so we don’t keep making the same mistakes.
Anytime we think we can get away with doing life our way and still be blessed by God, we are mistaken. The result of living this way is powerless, because God and His power are not in it.
If we want to walk in the righteousness and justice of God, we must align with Him by being open vessels to Him and His ways, even when it doesn’t make sense to us. We must decide to follow Him in Spirit and truth. Anything less than faithfulness is sin and will prove to be fruitless (Romans 14:23).
If you look up the Word “fruitless,” you will find it’s actually a type of destitution. It occurs when we leave our very Life Source (who is God), out of our decisions. Simply put, our way alone will not profit much. Ever. So, basically, not yielding to God’s ways produces a very limited yield. In God’s eyes, it’s literally counted as a no good, lifeless waste. God’s Word clearly tells us that we are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6).
I love the command that our Lord spoke through Joshua, which is, "Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped . . . and serve the Lord. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:14-15 NIV).
So, our decisions matter. God cares and is watching. He longs for us to draw near to Him and live out His strategies, even for our own benefit. When we seek Him, He’s faithful to lavish us with His wisdom. He will be overjoyed that we want to work with Him. He will meet us there and share His best life with us and Himself as our greatest love.
To God be the glory.
Margaret D. Mitchell is the Founder of God's Love at Work, a marketplace outreach purposed to share God's greatest power source - the love of Christ.
Originally published Sunday, 14 May 2023.
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