Faith vs. the Odds

Faith vs. The Odds
We live in a society where we make decisions numerous times a day.
Many times the decisions are minor and it doesn’t really matter if you make the wrong choice or not “where to eat at after church, what show to watch on TV” you get the picture.
Then other times we are asked to make some pretty big choices. “Who to marry, what job to apply for, what church to attend, what house to buy, where to live – understand the difference?
Well with most big choices we start to weigh the odds out by pros vs. cons.
Isaiah 30:21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it."
But when we hear His voice, we must be willing to follow it!
While the Christian life can be very adventuresome and exciting, it should not be a "hope-for-the-best, luck-of-the-draw, or shot-in-the-dark" string of decisions. Every decision can be made with the confidence that God is in control.
Isaiah 30:21 is just one of many promises of navigational help that God has given us in His Word.
This verse assures us that when we come to decisions concerning compass headings in life, the Lord will tell us which way to go: "This is the way; walk in it."
The Holy Spirit lives in us, and we have the promise that God will "never leave us nor forsake us" (Hebrews 13:5), so we can be assured that the Lord will guide us whether to "turn left or turn right" when it comes to decision-making!
We may not literally hear the voice of the Lord speaking behind us, but we can be sure that God will not leave us "up for grabs” when it comes to the decisions we must make in life.
Gideon was a man who was asked to make a decision. The story of Gideon is found in Judges 6-7.
Gideon feared that his own limitations would prevent God from working through him. He was from weakest clan and was the least in his entire family.
God spoke to him and promised to be with him and together they will destroy the Midianites.
“I will be with you” God told Gideon, and God promised to give him the strength he needed to overcome the opposition. In spite of this clear promise for strength, Gideon made excuses. Seeing only his limitations and weaknesses, he failed to see how God could work through him.
Like Gideon, we are called to serve God in specific ways. Although God promises us the tools and strength we need, we often make excuses. But reminding God of our limitations only implies that He does not know all about us or that He has made a mistake in evaluating our character. Don’t spend time making excuses. Instead, spend it doing what God wants.
God told Gideon he was going to defeat the Midiantes who were said to have 15,000 men in their army.
Gideon was weighing out his faith vs. the odds and wasn’t too happy with the outcome so he asked God for a sign.
Judges 6:36-40:
36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you are truly going to use me to rescue Israel as you promised, 37 prove it to me in this way. I will put a wool fleece on the threshing floor tonight. If the fleece is wet with dew in the morning but the ground is dry, then I will know that you are going to help me rescue Israel as you promised.” 38 And that is just what happened. When Gideon got up early the next morning, he squeezed the fleece and wrung out a whole bowlful of water.
39 Then Gideon said to God, “Please don’t be angry with me, but let me make one more request. Let me use the fleece for one more test. This time let the fleece remain dry while the ground around it is wet with dew.” 40 So that night God did as Gideon asked. The fleece was dry in the morning, but the ground was covered with dew.
Was Gideon testing God, or was he simply asking God for more encouragement? In either case, though his motive was right (to obey God and defeat the enemy); his method was less than ideal.
Gideon seems to have known that his requests might displease God and yet he demanded two miracles, even after witnessing a previous miracle. It is true that to make good decisions, we need facts.
Gideon had all the facts, but he still hesitated. He delayed obeying God because he wanted even more proof. Demanding extra signs was an indication of unbelief.
Fear often makes us wait for more confirmation when we should be taking action. Visible signs are unnecessary if they only confirm what we already know is true.
Today the greatest means of Gods guidance is His Word, the Bible. Unlike Gideon, we have Gods complete, revealed Word. If you want to have more of Gods guidance, don’t ask for signs: study the Bible.
Putting out fleeces is poor decision making method. Those who do this put limitations on God. They ask him to fit their expectations.
The results of such experiments are usually inconclusive and thus fail to make us any more confident about our choices. Don’t let a fleece become a substitute for Gods wisdom that comes through Bible study and prayer.
2 Corinthians 5:7:
7(For we walk by faith, not by sight:)

This morning I want to share with you the seven C’s when faced with a decision.
The "Seven C's" are the means God uses to show us which way to turn in the decision-making process.
1. Communication is by far the most important of the seven C's. The primary way in which God communicates with us is through His Word and the way we communicate with God is through prayer.

Scripture not only contains the navigational charts, it also guards and supports the other "C's." When it comes to making decisions, most of what we need to know is quite obvious from black and white Scripture. Such as questions like whether or not to lie on a job application shouldn’t require an in-depth, decision-making process because the answers are easy to find--right on the surface of Scripture.

When it comes to decisions about which job applications we should fill out the Bible continues to help us by giving us guidelines. While the answer may not be in black and white Scripture, there are still numerous biblical guidelines, found in Scripture that will lead us in to the right decisions.
For example, the biblical guidelines found in Deuteronomy 6:7 and Hebrews 10:24-25 would clearly indicate that you should not apply for a job which would prevent you from fulfilling your family and church responsibilities.
Needless to say, prayer, the other side of communication, is also vital for making decisions. In 1 Peter 5:7 we are told to "cast all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you." Does this anxiety include concern about making the right decisions?
Of course it does. If God has promised us over and over again in Scripture that He cares about our well-being, certainly will answer our prayer requests for help in making decisions about such things as jobs, colleges, careers, homes, churches, marriages, families, ministries, finances and whatever else demands our decisions. But He wants us to pray!

2. Convictions of the Holy Spirit, another important "C" of decision-making, must be closely examined. Every Christian will have these convictions because the Holy Spirit lives in every believer. The convictions from the Holy Spirit will always be in line with God's perfect will for us and are therefore crucial when it comes to making right decisions. (See 1 John 2:27 But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.
Christ lives in us through the Holy Spirit, and we also live in Christ. This means that we place our total trust in Him, rely on Him for guidance and strength.

3. Common Sense is a “C" that we generally take for granted, and yet it is definitely a means that God has given us to make decisions. In fact, most decisions in life are "small" and are made primarily by using common sense. God does not require Christians to kiss their brains goodbye upon conversion! Does He expect us to use up a lot of time and spiritual energy praying about what particular pair of shoes to wear or whether to brush our teeth? Of course not! Use your common sense! God has blessed us with common sense and it's our responsibility, as much as possible, to use it for wise decision-making about the common, everyday matters of life. "Sanctified common sense" is part of the navigational system that God has given us!

4. "How God made us" is what the "C" of Composition is all about. The way in which God sovereignly put us together as to likes and dislikes, looks and brains, abilities and spiritual gifts is actually a means that God uses to guide us. For example, would the Lord be guiding your decision to become a singer or a pianist for His glory if He hasn't blessed you with natural singing or musical ability? Probably not! By the same token, however, God may be guiding you to say "yes" to an opportunity to be involved in a youth ministry if you like kids and have the natural ability to relate to and communicate with children or teenagers.
1 Peter 4:10 tells us that we should use "whatever gift we have received to serve others, administering God's grace in its various forms.
Our abilities should be faithfully used in serving others: none are for our own exclusive enjoyment. Some people well aware of their, believe that they have the right to use their abilities as they please.

5. The Counsel of other believers is another one of the seven C's that God uses in helping us make decisions. Proverbs 11:14 says that "many advisors make victory sure." One person’s perspective and understanding is severely limited: he or she may not have all the facts or may be blinded by bias, emotions, or wrong impressions. We need to seek the counsel of others and be open to their advice. Then after considering all the facts make your decision. Mature, godly Christians can point us in the right direction and help us make right decisions. The key for helpful counsel in decision-making is to consult a number of godly men and women who have some experience themselves in navigating the area where you need to make a decision. This is the way the Body of Christ should work, and it is a primary way in which God guides us in making decisions. As various body parts of your physical body help your hand, for example, "decide" what and how to do something, so the different members of the Body of Christ function as facilitators for each other.

6. Circumstances are obviously another one of the Seven C's of God's guidance system. If you believe that God is sovereign, all-knowing, all-powerful and everywhere at the same time, is there any circumstance that escapes His notice or is out of His control? Of course not! There is nothing that happens by mere chance, and that includes every last detail of our lives. If our all-wise and loving heavenly Father is completely sovereign, can He not control circumstances in such a way so as to lead us to make right decisions? Of course He can!
Those proverbial "open doors" and "closed doors" that believers talk about really do exist! They are not just a naive "Christian view" of circumstances, but rather a working definition of one of the C's that God has given to help us in Life. But here again we must be very careful about making decisions based only on circumstances.

What looks at first like a closed door may actually be a door waiting to be knocked on and opened. (See Matthew 7:7.) 7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.

And an apparently open door may not really be open. A job offer with a higher salary does not necessarily mean that God is directing us to pick up and move to a new location--we may have forced our own interpretation on that circumstance! It's even possible for Satan to manipulate certain circumstances--this would certainly be part of his scheming strategy to blow us off course. (See 2 Corinthians 2:11 and 11:14.) 2 Corinthians 2:11:11 so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.
2 Corinthians 11:14:
14 But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. But let's not let these danger signals make us afraid to prayerfully analyze the circumstances around us. God definitely uses circumstances in His navigational system.

7. Finally, there are times when God steps in and takes Control of the decision-making process in no uncertain terms. In some situations there is no question that God is indicating what decision He wants us to make. In the normal decision-making process, for example, a good offer on our house may or may not be an indication that God wants us to move. But if our house just "happens" to burn to the ground, we can be sure that God wants us to move--regardless of the cause of the fire! Although that isn't a very pleasant illustration, it does make the point that sometimes the Lord takes the decision-making process completely out of our hands. Sometimes God steps in and controls our decision because some of the other C's seem to be pointing us in a certain direction, but God wants us to go in a different direction. For example, God used the "C" of control in the life of the apostle Paul in Acts 16:6-10. At others times God controls our decision because He knows of some impending danger or a future unlikely turn of events that a common sense decision-making approach would miss completely.

And sometimes God just graciously chooses to use the "C" of Control to deliver us from the dilemma of doubt in the decision-making process.
When facing overwhelming odds we sometimes will be afraid. God understands this fear but it doesn’t excuse us from doing God’s will. God will give you the strength you need. We must listen to God and be ready to take the first step. Only after we begin to obey God will we find the courage to move ahead.