Decision

As he neared Damascus on his journey,

suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.

He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him,

“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

Acts 9:3-4

In God’s Kingdom, “decision” is a word that describes the act of saying “yes” to God. For some of God’s chosen people, the decision to say “yes” to Jesus happens suddenly, as it happened to the Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus. The Lord appeared to Paul with conviction and power, and through a profound spiritual experience, Paul said “yes” to the Lord he had been persecuting. For Simon Peter, however, the decision was a prolonged and gradual process. His initial acceptance of Christ was impulsive and somewhat immature. It took the crucifixion, the resurrection, and the wind and fire of Pentecost before Simon Peter really understood what it means to say yes to Jesus Christ.

Making the decision to say “yes” to Jesus is rather like Dr. Clovis Chappel’s analogy of breaking horses. Chappel notes that, in the Wild West, colts were turned loose on the uninhabited prairie—where they literally went wild. Later, when the horse had grown enough to be ridden, it was brought into a corral, a heavy saddle was slapped on its back, and a cowboy began the breaking process. The horses would kick and buck but, as long as they lived, those animals knew that on a certain day, in a certain corral, they were broken.

Chappel continues by saying that is not the way the thoroughbreds of Kentucky are broken. In the first place, thoroughbreds are never allowed to run wild. From the day a thoroughbred horse is born, it is nurtured and cared for. Soon the trainer puts a light bridle on the animal and leads it around. Later, a blanket is put across the horse’s back as the trainer leads it around. As the horse grows, the weight on its back is increased. Finally, one day the trainer rides the horse. The horse will not jump or buck when his handler sits in the saddle for the first time. We know that that horse is just as well broken as the Wild West horse. But when was the animal broken? No one can say, because it was a gradual process.

And so it is with us. God comes to each of us in different ways that are always exactly how we need to experience Him. For some, it is a blinding vision, but for others it is a slow process of growth. However, no matter which unique, individual process God chooses to use with us, there comes that time in our lives when we must choose God. There must be a time when we surrender our stubborn will to our Lord’s plan and purpose for our lives. There must be a time of decision—whether sudden or gradual—when we say “yes” to God.

It has often been noted that there is no handle on the outside of the door in Holman Hunt's famous painting of Christ knocking. The door must be opened from within; there must come a time of conscious decision. Out of that decision will grow a life of discipleship—but until that decision has been made, all of our claims to be Christ followers are in vain. We must decide to follow Jesus before we can walk in His footsteps. Then, and only then, can we realize the plan and purpose for which we were created, sustained, and redeemed by the Lord’s grace, mercy, and love.

Today you and I are all being asked to make a decision! I pray we will all choose wisely and well.

If today you hear his voice, just say “yes.”

~~Anonymous

A Question to Ponder: Have you made the decision to follow your Lord and Master, regardless of where he leads you and no matter how high the price you are asked to pay? Have you reached the point where you are willing to surrender your stubborn self-will to God’s divine will, taking up your cross and following wherever he might lead? If not, why not?

A Prayer to Offer: Gracious God, how thankful I am today that you have called me to be your own. But even as I say those words it pains my heart that I have been so slow in making the decision to wholeheartedly surrender my stubborn self-will to your perfect plan for my life. I say I will take up my cross and follow you, and then I hold back. There are parts of my life I am not willing to change, especially when it comes to this thing called loving-self-care. Yes, it sounds good, but in practice I have a hard time putting all the various parts of my restoration process into place. Thank you for being so patient with me when I am so slow to learn. Thank you for looking on me with pity and giving me chance after chance after chance to get it right. Thank you for your Spirit working within me, convicting me of sin and bringing about transformation one step at a time. Yes it is true, I am not yet where you want me to be—but it is also true that I am no longer where I once was when I began this self-care journey. You are so very good to me, and I am confident that you will complete the good work you have begun in me. Amen.

An Action Step to Take: Was your conversion a gradual, one-step-at-a-time process, or were you radically transformed in a dramatic, life-altering moment? Write a paragraph in your spiritual journal about your decision to follow Jesus, and what brought it about.

“Today, if you hear his voice,

do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.”

Hebrews 3:15