A Faith Based Decision
What an awesome thing it is to be alive…to be…to possess existence…to be a self. The thrill of existence is that we can have a real passion for experiencing life-that we can go for God’s best. Jesus called it having life and having it abundantly.
But there are things that cause us to abandon the passionate pursuit of God’s best in our life. If this happens, we exist listless and bored. Life becomes a duty, a chore, something to be done and we can even come to resent our own existence. What can be done? The cure for dead-end living is to make a faith-based decision. A decision to find the promises of God, believe them and launch out. A faith based decision pronounces its blessing on even the weakest beginning, as long as it is a real beginning. A faith based decision breaks the spell of dispassionate living. A faith-based decision is an awakening to the new possibilities that lie beyond the realm of a limited life. The cynic may say, “it’s all just words”, but words are the essence of ultimate reality. Change your words and you’ll change your ways.
But I will not deceive you-a faith based decision involves risk. If there is no risk involved, it’s not faith. To challenge Pharaoh or face Goliath involves risk. But existence itself is a risky business. If you never challenge Pharaoh or face Goliath, you run the risk of becoming bored, listless and resenting your own existence. If you don’t take the risk of a faith based decision, there is the danger of losing your decisiveness, of going through life without passion or courage and fading away into death.
The path of a true fighter is a difficult one. When the fighter begins to grow cool as time goes by, he is in danger of drifting into a dispassionate life. The fighter who remains faithful to the faith-based decision to go for God’s best realizes that his whole life is a struggle. He does not fall into the trap of looking back and talking about the great faith decisions of the past. He knows full well that at decisive moments you must renew your resolve again and again and this alone makes good the decision and the decision good.
In the end, the archenemy of decision is cowardice. Cowardice is constantly at work trying to interrupt the cooperation of God and choice. Cowardice always finds a reason for not acting now-for saying, “Not today, but tomorrow.” But God in heaven says, “Do it now! Today is the day of salvation.” Cowardice is the Wormtongue that poisons the mind of Theoden and seduces to inaction. If only cowardice would appear in all its baseness, one would recognize it immediately for what it is and fight it with all their might. Cowardice wants to prevent the essential step of making a faith-based decision. To accomplish this it covers itself with a host of glorious names: Prudence. Caution. Reasonableness. Humility. Contentment. But its true name remains: Cowardice.
But cowardice does not come from God. God is not the spirit of cowardice. God is the spirit of power, love and a sound mind. God is the spirit of faith! But if no decision is made, there is no connection made with the Spirit of God. In the end failure to make a faith-based decision keeps us from doing what could be done, from having God’s best.
But this does not mean that everything is determined once a decision is made or that once a decision is made you no longer need to bother with little, everyday things. Such thinking amounts to nothing more than a fine show. We must not think that all that is needed is to make a lofty faith-based decision while ignoring the practical daily stuff of life. Indeed, a faith-based decision to go for God’s best is a great thing and the light of eternity shines upon it, but the decision itself is only the first step. A genuine decision is always eager to change its cloths and get down to practical matters. The real significance of a faith-based decision is that it give us inner conviction and connects us with the Spirit of God.
This much is certain: The greatest thing you can do is to give yourself to God utterly and unconditionally-weakness, fears and all. For God loves obedience more than good intentions or second-best offerings.
Therefore, dare to renew your decision of faith. It will open the door to new possibilities in life and will restore your passion for living. Dare to act on the faith inspired desire that lies buried in your heart. Confess your decision of faith and with boldness go forth!