Why Is It So Hard To Choose?

One of the most brutal and paralyzing realities of life is that of choices.

Yes, we make all kinds of choices every day. Many are natural: I’m thirsty, so I choose to drink a cup of coffee, a soft drink, a glass of water. I’m getting a bit drowsy at my desk, so I take a brisk five-minute walk, or I take 20 minutes for a power nap. I choose to bring my lunch, or instead grab a quick indigestible fast food snack, or eat with a friend, or just have another glass of water.

Those are all easy choices. They each have consequences, but not especially harmful. So, we generally do not consider the consequences for these things. We choose. We go on with life.

Some choices are much more serious and require forethought or careful research. Examples might include making a major purchase such as a refrigerator or oven, a car or a house. With sufficient research we feel confident that our choice has minimized the risk of future disappointment and needless costs.

Still, other choices are quite daunting. It’s just not possible to be a doctor and a fireman and a baseball pitcher all at the same time. There has to be a career choice. While many people change careers, they choose one at a time. And each potential career comes with risks. At the very start there is the uncertainty of making it onto a chosen career path. The required intelligence or skill or creativity might be more than a person possesses or can reasonably develop.

Making a career choice also comes with the risk of failure. We all know that failure in one’s career is far more serious than ordering the wrong meal at the drive-thru. A failed career will most likely have long-lasting consequences, not to mention the emotional stress of failure.

A choice to go down one path means that other paths are not chosen. Our mind tells us that we will miss out on some things because of the paths we did not choose. “Would I have been a better dentist than a fireman?!”

The same fears enter into choosing a mate. A young adult thinks, “What if I choose the wrong person to marry?” Remember this: God rules, not destiny and He allows you to choose. Do you know why your choice for a mate will work? You choose faithfulness! Then, you apply genuine love with all the choices in marriage.

Every time we stand at a ‘Y’ in the road to make a choice, we decided to go down one path and not all the others. In doing so we accept one set of unknowns over others.

I find it completely mystifying that some people do not choose Jesus? Yet, for those who are in Christ Jesus there are promises from our Creator.

• Provisions in this life (Matthew 6:33)
• A new start (Romans 6:4; John 3:3)
• Adoption as sons of God (Romans 8:16)
• God’s Spirit to intercede for us and help us (Acts 2:38; Romans 8:26; John 14:16)
• A direct line to God (Jeremiah 33:3)
• Purification from sin (2 Peter 1:9)
• Partaking in the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4)
• Protection from Satan (1 Corinthians 10:13)
• Forgiveness if there is sin (1 John 1:9)
• Resurrection from the dead (Romans 6:5; 1 Corinthians 15)
• Eternal life (John 3:36; 11:35)

Faith in self comes without promise, but only uncertainties. Self-love gives me comfort only in knowing that I am in the majority. Yet, for the few who choose Jesus, there is great confidence in God’s promises. And there is life...eternal!


Mark Stinnett

November 20, 2022