Life is chock-full of choices. Every day we make thousands of little decisions—what to eat, what to wear, how to spend our time or money. And this doesn’t even include the huge questions we may be contemplating:
- Where should I go and what should I do after college?
- Should I go to graduate school or to try to get a job?
- Where should I go to graduate school? How do I decide which one to pick?
- Which friendships should I invest in?
These questions can be so overwhelming that it would be nice if someone else could decide for us, right? Or, if God would just send us a text message or e-mail with His answer. Like a magic 8-ball, it would be so much easier if we could ask our big question, and God would tell us, “Signs point to yes” or “My sources say no” or “Reply hazy, ask again later.” But this not how God works. Writer and college career counselor, Bethany Jenkins, suggests that when we treat God like he’s a magic 8-ball, it’s as if we desire His omniscience more than the counsel He wants to give us. She writes,
“When trying to make decisions, our problem is that we’re rarely satisfied with God’s wisdom. We want his omniscience…. We want to know every step, every turn, every possibility, and every outcome.”
We want to know as much as God knows about our situation and decision, and when we don’t (because we can’t!), we become discontent and anxious.
Thankfully, there’s a higher path that leads to freedom. Find out more here!
This post originally appeared on the Senior EXIT blog, January 26, 2016, and it points to The Gospel Coalition post of the same title by Bethany Jenkins on on September 23, 2015.
