Wow! What a great way to start off my Sunday morning it’s 5am and I’m in tears. This has helped me more than you know Pastor John! A reminder and wake up call on how my indecisiveness has many consequences but above all, it’s behavior that is disobedient to our Lord and Savior. Time to repent and get to work!! Thanks to your message I will never look at “standing still” as a wise decision when perfectionism tries to get in the way. Because you’re right, its not a stand still, its DRIFTING. Pick something, get started and leave the rest up to Him because God loves to steer a MOVING ship!!! 👏🏽🚢 🌊 🙌🏽
God is so good!!! I love reading articles from Desiring God so I searched for Desiring God + indecision and found this. This applies to me in so many ways, and I'm only 35 years old...God always knows what you need to hear, when you need to hear it. And it doesn't matter that someone from a different age bracket asked the question, because this all applies to me too. Amen!!!
Never stop persuing the ways of God! Even on your down time when God hasn't given you a major task. Keep persuing his word and the things that are pleasing to the lord! In all your decisions seek to do his will! If we do this, then we have made a decision at that point! Congratulations!
This was sooo helpful thank you. I’ve been listening to all your podcasts on making a decision. All the God given advice is wonderful and has helped me enormously. Sometimes we are so afraid of ‘making’ the wrong decision but when we seek God and His guidance and are striving to please Him and even wanting to be in His will is the way to go. Striving to ‘be holy’ is a hard one and extremely challenging but something I long to be. Thank you Pastor John, always love listening to your podcasts and sermons and come away feeling the Lord is guiding me. Bless you and your ministry. 🙏🏻
I know this isn't the place to ask questions, but... I'm a slow-moving perfectionist myself. Yet, throughout my adult life, I've (by faith, I believed) pursued investigatively many options quite outside my comfort zone. I imagined it would mean closed doors and temptation, lit paths and facility by the Spirit. What I've found is little light, no direction except "no," and at 50, I am increasingly certain I have wasted my life doing my best (though quite imperfectly) to follow the Lord boldly. I am now solely full of regret, recognizing little opportunity ahead, wishing I had done what I wanted in my career instead of "following God," since it seems I failed at that, or didn't understand. Now, my sense is that I'm left in the wilderness for longer than a mere season, knowing it's possible there are years ahead, but... What now? I'm not leaving my faith like so many today who are deconstructing over disappointment or hurts. But, I don't know how not to hate the last 30+ years.
I have felt like this before, but then I started realizing that I was putting too much emphasis on living for God, rather than living WITH God. I believe God has been showing me that really it doesn’t matter what you do, he can use anything. So it’s okay to pursue a career you want (He is the one who made you and put the desire in you) as long as it doesn’t pull you away from Him. Some people do get a surprise calling to go do some crazy mission work etc., but others are used as they are working as teachers, construction workers, in banks, whatever. What you do as a career isn’t the same as what you do for God. And as John Piper said, don’t let age stop you. I’m 42 going back to school for nursing and I have 50 yr olds in my classes. Just keep going forward. And also use how God made you, to guide you. If you like to work with your hands, maybe that’s part of his guidance, for example.
This is awesome! I have to decide whether I will continue my studies (chemical engineering) at university or quit studying and apply for an apprenticeship. Continue studying would be the more risky thing, because I could potentially waste some more years (I am 25 years old now). I am already studying for 3 years and I am kinda scared to be 30 and haven't got any graduation. But the prospect of being an engineer sounds amazing. It's about whether I want to put the effort into it right now. I actually want to continue studying and I think further studying would make me more dependent on trusting the Lord.
wow I can relate to the school choices, but I'm not nearly as far along haha! I think that what helps (other than reading the bible and praying of course) is ultimately I weigh what is more long-term, what will I regret more if I don;t do?
It sounds very much like you'd like to be an engineer. As a 50 year old who's just dropped out of grad school (I've been pursuing being a professor, but have realized I will be in my 60s before I really START earning a living?), I can say, at your age? - take the time. The job is to be the best Christ-follower in whatever role you choose. It's not disobedient to pursue engineering. It's not disobedient to pursue an apprenticeship. Pick what gives you the most life and gratitude to God and opportunity for the future. And do it. I wish I'd known this earlier.
God opened all the doors for me to attend a school in CA, but I'd be over 100K in debt when I graduate. I can start online to save a TON of money, but would I be compromising then? I seem to have the idea that if I don't attend on-campus this Fall I'm saying I don't have enough faith in God that he will provide that money to pay off the debt down the road. Is this right?
Or maybe God is giving you the wisdom to know how to save money while still being able to attend. ? Just a thought. As Dave Ramsay says there are many biblical scriptures showing why debt is bad. You don’t want to be a slave to the lender.
WAIT ON HIM,WAIT.HE WILL SHOW UP.THOSE WHO WAIT ON THE LORD SHALL NOT BE ASHAMED,THOSE WHO WAIT UPON THE LORD SHALL RENEW THEIR STRENGTH. KING SAUL WENT TO BATTLE AND DID NOT WAIT ON THE BLESSING FROM THE LORD,AND LOST HIS ANNOINTING, AND WAS REJECTED,AND HIS KINGDOM WAS GIVEN TO DAVID. ALL OF GODS CHOSEN WAITED FOR INSYRUCTION FROM GOD,AND RECIEVED THEIR BLESSING BECAUSE THEY FAITHFULLY WAITED AND BELIEVED.
Quite unappealing manner of focus, my friend Silo. You should work on that and seek help. It’s a massive hindrance to be given to the observance of dislikes in people because If you do, anyone you come across you will find something you do not like and you may end up alone pushing either yourself away from others whose qualities you do not like or in harshness push them away from you. In doing so you will have many more unlikable manners in and of yourself.
