How do we know if we’re making the right decision?
Right away, I’ll tell you that there is no way to know one hundred percent every single time that you’re making the right choice. God isn’t Siri, just telling you to “turn right,” “go straight,” or “make a U-turn.” He’s not just there to give you directions, He wants a relationship with you.
He wants to be along for the ride with you, available for you to ask Him questions and get to know Him. Not just for you to be looking to Him to tell you where to go.
Sometimes, we know exactly what we’re supposed to do, but it’s not something we really want to do. I think God gives us extra doses of clarity when what He’s asking us to do is difficult or it doesn’t make sense.
About a year ago, I quit my corporate job because I felt like God told me to. I loved my job, it paid me well, and I was even able to have my son home with me while I worked all day. But God told me to give it up. As much as I loved it, and as little sense as it made, I did not doubt that it was what I was meant to do. I remember telling my husband, “I can’t ever tell another woman to be obedient to God if I don’t quit my job right now. I know it’s what I’m supposed to do.”
If you’re in that situation right now where you know exactly what you’re supposed to do, go and do it. Be obedient and say yes to God because it will be the best decision you ever make. You’ll see Him do incredible things that you would’ve otherwise missed out on.
But maybe you don’t have that level of clarity right now. Perhaps you are 50/50 on a decision and have no idea what to do. There are some things that we can do in those moments to get a little more clarity to help us make the decision.
1. Seek God’s Direction
Ask God!
A lot of times, I’ve spent so much time talking about, thinking about, or worrying about a decision that I feel like I probably talked to God about it at some point. The reality, though, is that I haven’t intentionally sought God in the decision.
What I’ve found helps me is writing out my prayers in a journal. I can actually get my thoughts out when I put pen to paper. This also has been a way that God shows me something I didn’t realize – sometimes it’s a feeling or worry I didn’t realize I had. Sometimes it’s a truth from the Bible that I needed to be reminded of. It has been a way that God speaks into my situation as I thoughtfully and intentionally pray about it.
In Psalm 25:4, David says, “Make your ways known to me, Lord; teach me your paths.” He is intentionally asking God to make His way known to him. This is such a great verse that we can pray in the middle of our decision-making – “Lord, make your way known to me.”
In Psalm 86:11, David takes it a step further saying, “Teach me your way, Lord, and I will live by your truth. Give me an undivided mind to fear your name.”
David expresses his intent to follow God’s direction and to be obedient. He doesn’t just want to know the way, he wants to actually walk in it.
This is so vital for us, as well. We shouldn’t just be seeking God’s input as just another opinion to consider; it should be the ultimate input that we listen to. Whether it’s what we want to do or not, or if it’s something we never even considered. We should do it without hesitation or question or without requiring ten more signs and affirmations.
If we are seeking God in a decision, and He makes the choice clear to us, we should be obedient.
So, ask yourself, have you actually spent time praying about it and seeking God in this decision, or have you just spent so much time talking to your family, friends, and mentors or worrying about it that it feels like you probably prayed about it somewhere in there?
If we want clarity from God, we have to ask Him for it.
2. Set Your Course
After you pray and seek God for clarity, along with consulting some trusted people (but I’m assuming that was very quickly checked off your list), you make a choice.
Sometimes, you just have to make a decision. You take all the information you have, and you make the best decision you can at the time you have to make it.
Ask yourself some questions like does this align with God’s character? What do I have to say no to because of this? What will I have to give up? Is this a good thing?
Galatians 6:10 says, “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”
Answering those questions can help bring clarity to the situation.
Do as much as you can to get all the information, then make the best decision you can with what you’ve got. Even when you don’t have total clarity.
I think sometimes we get to make a choice. While God is sovereign, I don’t believe He’s a control freak demanding that you make a certain choice at every crossroads. He lets us choose what we want to do sometimes. If He wants you to do a certain thing, He will make it clear to you. If He doesn’t then choose what sounds the most exciting or makes the most sense right now.
Make the best decision you can with what you’ve got at the time you have to make it.
3. Submit It To God
Whatever it is, submit it to God. If it’s a degree, job, sport, relationship, new house, or trip, give it over to God to use however He deems fit.
My husband and I bought a truck years ago and made the declaration right there in the dealership that this was God’s truck, and we would use it for Him. We helped friends move, transported church equipment, and moved across the country to be a part of a church launch with it. If anyone needed help from someone with a truck, we made ours available.
And it was amazing to see how God made a way for us to pay it off completely in less than a year. I fully believe it was because we committed it to being used by God and for Him. It was a blessing for us, but it was also meant to bless others.
Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”
Whatever it is that you’re deciding on, tell God that it’s His to use for His glory. He can do whatever He wants with it whenever He wants to. It will change the way you view it and steward it, and You will see Him use it.
4. Stay Open To Change
Be open to God changing or pivoting your path. It’s okay for a decision to be made and changed and changed again. Sometimes a decision that is right right now is not fitting for your season in a year.
We are often afraid to make the wrong decision because of what has happened in the past. But what if that wasn’t actually the wrong decision? Here’s a different perspective.
Maybe it was…
- A lesson that you needed to learn in how to be more patient.
- A sweet scenic route of enjoying an incredible experience in another country.
- A story to help someone else who will go through a similar struggle.
- An opportunity for dependence on God to trust in His provision for your daily bread.
- A divine appointment with someone who will come to know Jesus because of you.
God always uses these situations and turns them around for good. When we have that perspective, we can have more confidence in making a decision instead of worrying we will make the wrong one.
It makes me think of Job in the Bible. He lost so much back to back… his health, his family, and his wealth. Is it because Job made a mistake or the wrong decision? Not at all. His friends thought that, but they didn’t hear God tell Satan in Job 1:8, “Have you considered my servant Job? No one else on earth is like him, a man of perfect integrity, who fears God and turns away from evil.”
Job didn’t have insight into this conversation either, but he held onto his trust in who he knew God to be despite the situation. If he thought that God was just angry or that he must’ve made the wrong decision, he would’ve missed the opportunity to be that “man of perfect integrity” and display his trust in God.
We don’t get to see the whole picture, either. It’s so important that we believe that God is going to use it however He wants to – that’s why we submit it to Him first. Then, we trust that if He needs to redirect us or change our course, He will.
Lies we believe that make decision-making more difficult:
- If it’s hard then it probably isn’t right
I’m sure you’ve heard this lie before. But James 1:12 reminds us that, “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”
Those who love the Lord will still go through trials and stand tests we have to persevere. Being a believer doesn’t mean we will live a life of ease.
- You should have peace about the situation if it’s from God
I’ve sought this in my own life so many times. I’ve asked, “Lord, give me peace if this is the right thing to do.” But what I’ve learned is that we don’t get peace from a situation, peace comes from God.
When I felt like I was supposed to quit my job, I did not have peace about the situation. It didn’t make sense financially or with the job market at the time. I didn’t have peace about the situation, but I had confidence and security knowing that I was being obedient to God.
God is my peace, not the situation that I’m in.
- There is only one right decision and if you choose wrong, you’ll miss God’s will for your life.
This is such a limiting view of God. The belief that we can throw God’s whole plan off course with one decision or that He can’t get us back on track if He needs to puts us in charge of our lives instead of God. If we believe that there is only one right way to live this life, we need a bigger faith. God is so much more powerful than that.
God is sovereign and good and able to do whatever He wants. If we are meant to go a different way, He will make it clear.
So, if you’re struggling to make a decision right now, intentionally seek God and ask Him to lead you and guide you. Then, make the best decision you can, submitting it to God, and trusting that He will use it for His good and redirect you if He needs to.
We can’t always know if we’re making the right decision, but we can have confidence, peace, and security by trusting in God.
Are you struggling to make a decision? Click here for 10 Bible verses to encourage your faith (with wallpapers for your phone of each of them!)
Looking for more? Check out the latest blog posts below!
- How to Read the Bible and Actually Understand It
- How to Practice Self-Care as a Christian | Part Five: Gratitude
- How to Practice Self-Care as a Christian | Part Four: Community Support
- How to Practice Self-Care as a Christian | Part Three: Service
- How to Practice Self-Care as a Christian | Part Two: Scripture
I love your devotionals.They inspire me a lot I am learning a lot from this thanks for sharing . I even take notes.