Pastors Leslie & Adeline Chua

We make decisions every day. Occasionally, we have to make big decisions, which will have a significant impact on our life. During these moments, we want to make good decisions that will produce the desired outcomes.

In the book of Proverbs, we are counselled to “trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding” and “in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Seeking God’s counsel guarantees His leading and guidance. It also assures us of God’s intervention when the going gets tough and the way is rough.

To have God “make straight your paths” is a reassuring thought. When God is involved, He will remove all obstacles, and nothing will be impossible. Surely, you remember the LORD God parted the Red Sea for the Israelites to cross over and Jesus raised the dead with a command.

God will lead and guide us according to His will when we put our trust in Him. The problem is all too often we take things into our own hands and rely on our own judgement rather than trust Him.

How do you know if you trust God?

By your action. Do you acknowledge Him in all your ways? Do you always commit your decision to Him, and then wait for His response?

Truth be told, most Christians don’t. Yes, they pray and ask God to speak to them. But they are not really serious about it. They are just going through the ritual of prayer.

One of these two things usually happen.

First, they have already decided. They merely want God to endorse their decision. They will jump on anything that remotely suggests God is saying yes.

Second, they act before God could say or do anything. Usually, this happens when they are confronted with a difficult decision. Driven by fear and anxiety, they desperately want God to speak to them quickly.

In both instances, these people lean on their own understanding.

Doing so takes God out of your decision-making, and hence, out of the equation. The outcome may turn out to be as you have wanted, but not the best as it is not God’s will for you.


The Importance of Committing All Your Decisions to God

In this pastoral reflection, I want to make a case for seriously committing all your decisions to God, and then, waiting for Him to speak to you and guide you through your circumstances.

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Time and chance play an important role in the success and failure of all our undertakings,
notwithstanding our cleverness, skills, planning, and diligence. 
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The wisest man ever lived, Solomon, made this observation: Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all (Ecclesiastes 9:11).

You would agree with Solomon if you have lived long enough. I certainly agree with him. Time and chance play an important role in the success and failure of all our undertakings, notwithstanding our cleverness, skills, planning, and diligence.  

There is a randomness to the events of life. We must concede that many variables influence what goes on between decision-making and the final outcome. Some of these factors are within our control while some are not. We may not even be aware of some of them.


Variability Occasion Noise

In the book, Noise – A Flow in Human Judgment, the authors argue that unrelated and unpredictable factors can have a significant impact on human judgement.

An example is given. Imagine two students going for an interview at the same Ivy League University. They are best friends, and both score straight As in their exams.

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Unrelated and unpredictable factors can have a significant impact on human judgement.
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The first girl has a great interview. The admissions officer is impressed with her. She got out of the interview feeling good. As she walks to her car, the sun is shining bright and a cool breeze is blowing.

The second girl also has a smooth interview the following day. As she leaves, the sky is covered with dark clouds and the rain is pouring heavily.

A few weeks later, both receive a letter from the university. The first girl is rejected by the university while the second girl is admitted.

According to a 2003 study titled “Clouds Make Nerds Look Good,” behavioural scientist, Uri Simonsohn observed that on cloudier days, admissions officers focus on academic grades. On the other hand, on sunnier days, they pay more attention to non-academic qualities like athletic and artistic abilities instead of grades.

Well, other factors might have influenced the admissions officer’s decisions instead of the weather. Perhaps, all the interviewees preceding the first girl were great, and he just did not want to go on an acceptance streak. Maybe, he quarrelled with his wife the night before. Maybe his favourite football team just lost a game to its arch-rival, or he was feeling unwell at the time of the interview.

The researchers have observed that irrelevant factors such as these can affect the decisions of bank loan officers, doctors, judges, and football referees.

The conclusion is given different scenarios, a person might encounter fundamentally the same situation, but he makes different judgements. Researchers call this phenomenon “variability occasion noise.”


God’s Providence

My point is even if you make a good decision, you may not get a good outcome. There is just too much “noise” in the process between the time when you make a decision and the final outcome. There are just too many variables that can influence the outcome of a decision, and many of these are unpredictable.

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Even if you make a good decision, you may not get a good outcome… Every decision we make is fraught with unpredictability.
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Three thousand years ago, Solomon had wisely observed the unpredictable nature of life. You cannot avoid it no matter how clever, strong, prepared, and hardworking you are. Every decision we make is fraught with unpredictability.

But before you lapse into pessimism and feel helpless, look at the verse in Ecclesiastes 9:11 again. Notice that Solomon was making this observation in the context of life “under the sun,” which means a life that is lived apart from God.

However, things are different when God is actively involved in your life. With God in the picture, you get to experience His providence.

When you acknowledge Him and commit your decisions to Him, He will lead and guide you. He will clear the way and straighten your paths. Uneven paths become level, and crooked ones straight.

Even if you do not hear God correctly and make a wrong decision, which happens sometimes, He will redirect your path. He will make the necessary course correction.

So, trust the Lord and involve Him in all your decision-making. Why lean on your own understanding when you have the benefit of help from an all-wise, all-powerful, and all-knowing God?