Making Choices

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(Picture "Decisions, Decisions, Decision" by burnin_dog)
I thank God for a cell discussion which went relatively well last Friday. I have made a choice to cover the topic on choices but then the scary thing was this: cell guide wasn't even ready for the week. So I was left on my own. But on hindsight, I am amazed how God helped to put the whole thing together. Starting with the week, I was beginning to experience choices made by friends, colleagues and also my volunteer. Then, I faced choices when I had a cold war with my sister. I also thank God for having the idea to use and even modify the "Lost at Sea" activity for cell discussion and how everything just flowed together, including how even the ice-breaker done by someone else was also on choices; our ambition when we were young. Thank God for a good time of thanksgiving last Friday and so many people shared!

Here's a summary on our cell discussion, which I sent to my members:

Last week’s cell discussion was on choices, which is the main theme that we study the book of Judges and Ruth. We saw how despite being a sharp contrast from each other, the two books is really linked to each other, telling us about choices. We make choices everyday and should be experts but yet, we can sometimes still make the wrong choices…

• The choice of Jephthah - The choice that Jephthah made which cost him as daughter. Even though “… the spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah” (Judges 11:29) just before he prepared for battle with the Ammonites, in the very next verse, he made a vow to the Lord that if He deliver the Ammonites into his hands, he will sacrifice as burnt offering whatever that came out of his house to meet him when he returns in victory (which happened to be his beloved daughter) (Judges 11:30-31). That spoke of his trust in the Lord and the choice he made.
  
  
• The choice of Samson - Samson chose to marry a Phillistine woman despite the Lord’s command to not intermarry with people who would turn the Israelites away from God (see Dt 7:2-4). His marriage caused much bloodshed and later his choice to be with Delilah caused his downfall
  
  
• The choice of Ruth – Though a Moabitess, decided to stay with Naomi even after she has been widowed and Oprah (her sister-in-law) left Naomi. She later became part of the lineage of Jesus Christ
  
  
• God Gives us Choices – Just like how He gave Adam and Eve the choice about the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Romans 1:24-32 also show us how sometimes God gives people over to their sinful desires
  
  
• Choose to be in the world not of the World - We started cell with a discussion about our choice of our ambitions when we were young and also played a game about choices and survivial. Sometimes there can be misleading messages, which even though seem sound, will sometimes help us make the wrong choices. Just as Peter Tsukahira encouraged us to be “in the world and not of the world”; to influence the world away from being unchrist-like.
  
  
• Choose Life or Death – I shared about the story from Our Daily Bread of John Wilkes Booth (who assassinated President Lincoln) and his elder brother, Edwin Booth, who saved President Lincoln’s son. One chose life, one chose death. God gives us the choice of life as well. See Dt 30:15-20 and Dt 11:26.
  
  
• How to Make Decisions – (i) some of us suggested using WWJD (What Would Jesus Do?), while some reminded us of the need to maintain a close walk to God which sometimes make making decisions easier because we know God’s will (see example of Job). Some choices may seem like wise ideas, just like how Lot (Genesis 13: 12-13) chose to stay near Sodom and Gomorrah because the land seemed better, but it turned out to be living near sin.
  
  
• Why People Keep Making “Bad” Choices – Some suggested not walking closely with God and as such not knowing how to make the right decisions. Perhaps making the choice to walk closely is also not easy because we can be forgetful about how the Lord has worked in our lives, just like the Israelites (see Judges 2:10), and just don’t see the need to. Whatever decision we make (even though if it is seemingly “right”), God knows our intentions. Remember how Jesus condemned the Pharisees for choosing to follow the Letter of the Law but not the Spirit of the Law (as discussed in previously in cell).