The Power of Choice

At any moment we have hundreds of decisions making options, some significant and some seemingly insignificant. But too often we operate on auto pilot, doing things by habit rather than by making conscious decisions. As a matter of fact, psychologists believe that 60% of the choices we make come from our subconscious mind; because there is already stored information in our minds that process or influence our actions. But interestingly, God has given us the power of choice, and He respects the choices we make at every point of our lives. But once we have made the choice, it has power over us.
So what then is choice?

The term ‘choice’ refers to the act of choosing between two or among alternatives. It’s important to note that without options or alternatives there’s no choice, and that makes life very easier and simpler. The complexity of life is borne out by the fact that there are alternatives or options available we must choose from. If Jesus Christ is the only God to be worshipped why the enticement to go worship other gods? If the only way available is to be rich, why will anyone choose to be poor?

But again, it is worthy to note that our lives today are the summation of all the choices we’ve made in life so far. Everything except the families we were born into is as a result of a choice we’ve made. Whatever we do in life is dependent on our choices, and as pointed out early on our Heavenly Father respects our choices. God programs our lives but we’ve the power of choice to make it turn out the way we want. There’s no spiritual authority that is more powerful than our choices. Otherwise God wouldn’t have allowed Adam to disobey Him and eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

THREE CHOICES TO MAKE IN LIFE

Though every human makes a thousand and one choices at every point of his/her life, there are some choices that they cannot do without. These choices it is believed have a ripple effect on whatever choice they will make after. These are:

1. Choose what you feed on. In Genesis 1:15-16, God specifically pointed out to Adam not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But what did Adam do? He took the decision to disobey God and eat of it. The consequences thereafter let’s leave for another day. Brother, you become what you feed on. Whatever you allow into your system is what you’ll become- garbage in garbage out. At any moment of your life, you must be intentional about the friends you make, the books you read, the church you attend, the music and tapes you listen to, etc. If you listen and read books on righteousness, you’ll become righteous, and the opposite is true.

2. Choose how you label things that happen in your life. Every day of the human race is filled with numerous happenings. In a day, somebody loses a loved one, another loses a job, another finds a job, a child is born, someone is promoted, etc. You must have the consciousness to choose how to label the things that happen in your life. When you’re sick, you say to yourself ‘I am healed’, when you’re down, you say to yourself, ‘rise up’. Don’t be quick to say negative things to yourself even if you find yourself in the most unfavorable situations. There’s power in your tongue and you must choose to use it positively. Genesis 22: 1-5.

3. Choose who you welcome into your life. We become whom we marry or allow into our lives. The people who come into our lives must complement us in one way or the other, not to take from us. The quality of our lives must also be defined by the quality of the people we relate with. We become whoever we allow into our lives. Genesis 2:21-23.

SEVEN STEPS IN MAKING THE RIGHT CHOICES

1. Seek direction from God. Our God is an all-knowing God. He knows what will become of us even before creating us. The best way we can make the right choices in life is seek His help. He is the one who will grant us good counsel as to which path to go and which one not to go. When we commune with Him by constantly reading His word, He directs our ways. Proverbs 3:5-6; Proverbs 1:1-4.

2. Define the problem or opportunity. We should at every point in time be able to tell whether the situation we find ourselves are problems or opportunities. Being able to tell these will grant us the strength to find solutions to them.

3. Gather information. Seeking information from the right sources helps you in making informed decisions. Don’t live like an island; run after knowledge, read more books, attend seminars and make yourself relevant so you become abreast with situations or opportunities.

4. Determine the alternatives. Try as much as possible to brainstorm on the various alternatives available to you.

5. Examine the alternatives. After determining the alternatives, weigh them, deliberate on them, ask yourself questions, weed out the worst ideas and identify the best ones. You must also count the cost involved with each alternative and the consequences attached to it.

6. Make a choice. After examining the alternatives, next is making a choice. But before make sure you have prayed and sought good counsel with regard to the best choice to go by.

7. Take a definite action. A decision is meaningless if no action is undertaken for which it was made. You don’t make a choice and watch aloofly for it to manifest itself; you must make a move. You must implement that choice made decisively.

In conclusion, you must know that whatever your life will turn out in the next 5-10 years is dependent on the choices you make today. Your life can never become better by chance but the choices you make at every point of your life. Make a better choice.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I thank You for Your word. I ask that though You’ve given me the power of choice, I humbly ask that You strengthen me to make the right choices. Shape me as I seek counsel from You through Your word today and everyday after of my life. In Jesus Christ name. Amen