No man can go through life without making decisions. Decisions must be made; there is no getting around it. Some are unimportant; others extremely important. One of the most important decisions one is called upon to make is whether or not he is going to serve God. That decision is up to ever man; nobody else can make it for him. God himself will not make that decision. If one is going to make the right decision in this area of his life, there are some things he should know. Let us look at these.

First, the right decision in serving God is one that requires courage. That is usually the case with respect to nearly every important decision we make. It takes courage to depend upon God and not self. We look at men like Gideon (Jud. 7), David (1 Sam. 17), and Daniel (Dan. 6). God cannot use the fearful and trembling. The New Testament calls upon us to “take courage” (cf. Acts 28:15). Courage is needed to fight the good fight of faith, and here may well be one reason some will not make the decision to serve the Lord – they do not have the courage to do so. Those who are young need courage when called upon to stand against the crowd. Older ones also need courage; they too face the peer pressure of the day. Have you the courage to make what you know is the right decision in serving God? Remember, the “fearful” will be lost (Rev. 21:8).

Second, right decisions require that we give them proper consideration. When one decides to follow the Lord, he does not do so ally. Men must be taught (Matt. 28:18), and once taught they are then faced with the decision as to whether or not to accept that teaching. It should not be either accepted or rejected without giving it intelligent consideration. Men need to “count the cost” in such an undertaking. But when the right decision is reached, the implication is that such a one knows what he is doing (Lk. 14:28-33; Matt. 8:19-22). God does not promise an easy road. He only promises victory to the faithful at the end of that road. Don’t gullibly swallow all you hear religiously – consider it carefully, and when that is done, the promise is that one may understand it (2 Tim. 2:7). Look it over carefully!

Third, making right decisions impose obligations. Any pledge to God is invalid unless we determine to accept the responsibility that goes with it. Note those that Joshua called upon to make a decision (Josh. 24:14-24). They were called upon to put away their other gods; God would have no rival. Does God have a rival in your heart? Note Jesus’ requirements (Lk. 9:23). Are will willing to accept the obligation of [1] denying self; [2] taking up the cross, and [3] following Jesus? We need to look back over our lives from time to time. How are we fulfilling the obligations we assumed when we became Christians? – obligations that have to do with service, life, thought and action. One of the marks of man-made religions is that they do not truly impose obligations on anyone for anything. Usually, only a verbal assent is required. But such is not truly and obligation assumed; it is merely lip service.

Fourth, right decisions must be made whole-heartedly. Material considerations; earthly obligations – these all must come secondarily. Jesus required commitment to that which we have decided to follow, for no man who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of heaven (Lk. 9:62). Christ does not approve of those who are always “looking back,” wondering if they had been better off to remain in the world. Someone has said that it does not take much of a man to become a Christian – thieves, drunkards, erers – some of these have been cleansed by the of Christ. But one thing is sure, one such a commitment is made, it takes all of a man to keep it!

Don’t be only half committed to the Lord and his cause. Understand when you decide to serve the Lord, it is going to have to be done whole-heartedly if God is to approve of it.

And so – right decisions call upon us to utilize mature judgment, not rushing into a thing, influenced by blind emotion. At the same time, once a decision is reached, it must be acted upon – or one is lost. – Bill Moseley 

There is the story of the cowboy who was riding along and came upon an Indian lying flat on the ground with his ear pressed to the ground. The Indian said: “Wait – wagon. Two miles away. Drawn by two horses. One black, one gray. Four people in wagon – man in red flannel shirt, along with wife – and two kids.”

The cowboy was amazed, not to mention highly impressed. Said to the Indian, “that’s one of the most astounding things I ever saw – how could you tell all that stuff just be listening with your ear to the ground?” The Indian responded, “not hard – they ran over me 30 minutes ago. Go after them.”

Have you ever been “run over” by the devil? Most people have at one time or another – and yet they don’t know what hit them half of the time. He might look like “an angel of light,” but he sure won’t appear in his true light! Then too, we are sometimes like the Indian – once the devil runs over us, we want to just lie there and wait for him to run over us again.

No, we need to pick ourselves up, make the determination that we know that the devil will try to deceive and not allow ourselves to be run over again. Don’t just lie there; he’ll be back! Know about his devices; understand his intentions, and with the Lord’s help, you won’t be flattened again! – Bill Moseley