Decisions And Stress Seem To Go Hand In Hand
There’s not a person alive who hasn’t made a decision and wondered if they made the right choice. Some decisions aren’t life-changing, but others can be. My post yesterday on what I kept from the Nordstrom Sale was all about decisions, but I’m not stressing over those. However, decisions on a college or career choice, who to marry, or where to live can be stressful. It seems like big decisions and stress go hand in hand.
Do you remember having a Magic 8 Ball as a child? I loved that thing, and I asked it a thousand questions over the years. If I didn’t like the answer it gave me, I would shake it until it finally came up with the answer I wanted. Life isn’t quite as simple as it was when I was a child. The decisions keep coming, but the answers aren’t as easy as shaking a Magic 8 Ball.
When you leave your house, you’ll decide whether to turn right or left. We never know how that one decision can affect our lives. Turning left might put you in a traffic jam that makes you late for work while turning right might give you the opportunity to see a beautiful rainbow. If you turn left, you might feel stressed knowing you’re going to be late for work, but that’s not life-changing unless you lose your job.
Some decisions recently have affected me, and others I love. Those decisions cause me the most stress because I know it isn’t just me who has to live with them. When I’m faced with decisions like this, I try to look for the Lord’s guidance.
In this case, I can see the Lord’s hand at work. Doors that seemed closed suddenly opened, bringing about more decisions. When another closed door opened up out of the blue, I was certain that the Lord was at work. However, everyone wasn’t as thrilled with the decisions as I was, and doubt started to creep in.
I developed a case of the “what ifs,” which made me start to second guess the decision. The what-ifs can send you down a rabbit hole, and the worst-case scenarios take up space in your mind. When the what-ifs start, seeing the Lord’s handi-work disappears.
I was talking to my mother, going over all the reasons for the decision. I mentioned that I thought it was the right choice and that I was certain the Lord was behind the scenes, making everything fall into place. Once I hung up the phone, I looked at my verse of the day.
7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence is in him.
I guess the Lord thought I needed some confirmation. Lol! If that wasn’t enough, this was my verse of the day yesterday.
7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
It would appear that the Lord is scolding me for not putting my trust in Him! I got the message LOUD and CLEAR!
There is no room for stress and trust in the same thought. If I put all my trust in the Lord, then stress has no choice but to vacate the premises. Stress is a tool of the devil, and trust is a tool of the Lord.
So… so long stress, and hello, trust! I know who I want to follow!
To GOD Goes The Glory!
Have A Blessed Day!
God puts people, situations, and opportunities in our path for a reason. When we trust and have faith in Him we are at peace. It’s when we doubt Him that we encourage distress and heartache.
Loved your lesson of the day. I prayed hard last night for help and guidance, due to my husband’s passing three weeks ago. I was ready to give up and after my prayer, I turned on You Tube, looking for something to put me to sleep. A video from Lighthouse of Wisdom popped up about women in their 70’s and 80’s suddenly becoming widows. I had never seen a video from that site before so I know it was the sign I needed. My mind and heart is a little more at peace because of it. I do believe in the power of prayer. Sometimes it is difficult to recognize the signs God sends but this one stood out. Thank you for your inspiration and confirmation of my beliefs!
Judy, I am so sorry to hear about your husband. I can’t imagine the heartache and stress you are going through. It is encouraging to know that the Lord sent you a video to ease your mind. He has you in His hands, and knows of your sorrow.
Thanks for your post again today. We have some decisions we need to make and thanks for the reminder. trust instead of stress.
Doubt definitely causes stress. Im trying daily to just lean on the Lord and look for the right decision to come from Him.
Great reminder that God is always there for us … easy to say but not always easy to truly believe. But I think God keeps sending us reminders (problems) until we get it right and relax in His provision. I’m big on the open and closed doors and try not to push hard to open a door that God has closed for me.
I enjoyed the post.
My brother and I had a magic 8 ball growing up. That brought back memories.
Thanks for this inspiring post. You are so good with words.
I enjoyed your post. I remember the Magic 8 Ball. My cousins and I spent many hours playing with it. I also remember so many times in times in my life when I spent hours, days or weeks struggling over something. And when I finally gave it to God the answer seemed so simple. It is so silly of us to struggle when God has the answer. As you say To God Be The Glory.
Great post today! Do you have a daily devotional you use… besides the Bible?
Not at this time. I’ve been looking for a good one to start.
Hi Tania.
🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋AMEN‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️