Choose a Good Ending
The concept of choice has always intrigued me.
In elementary school, I enjoyed books that allowed me to choose what the main character did next – every choice determined how the story ended. Sometimes, the ending was disappointing, and I’d go back to see how it would have ended if I had chosen differently. Such an easy fix in the fictitious world!
Disappointing endings aren’t as easy to manipulate in the real world.
Not all choices are equal. Some are so inconsequential you might even say they don’t matter much, and some are so monumental they change the course of life. The truth is, choice is a grand gift and I don’t think there is any greater privilege than the power to choose.
I chose to marry my high school sweetheart after college. It was a good decision, and we shared many wonderful years and were blessed with two precious daughters. We both came to forks in the road and made choices that impacted our lives in ways that neither of us could have predicted. These choices ended our marriage and catapulted us into a deep wilderness for seventeen years that, at times, felt like a great adventure but mostly it felt barren and desolate. Those years were plagued with struggle and unbearable heartbreak. When one mountain was conquered, another replaced it, and the exhausting climb began again.
Choices have consequences. In this human life, we live and thrive and suffer and die by the decisions we make.
Of course, we don’t always have choices. For example, when it came to your life on earth and the parents you got, you didn’t have a say, and we don’t always have a choice about the bad things that plunge into our lives like sickness and disease. We don’t get to decide if life will hurt; pain is an unavoidable component of the human condition.
But we can choose how we respond to pain and disappointment, and that is a lot of power.
Have you ever made a decision that destroyed the plans you had for your life? You looked around and realized that what you thought would be an exuberant ride turned out to be a disappointing journey that led you to a wasteland. Disillusioned you ask, “How did I get here?”
Perhaps you ended up with parents that set you on a course headed for shipwreck, or maybe you found yourself at a fork in the road and chose a painful path full of regrets. Wherever you were, wherever you are, wherever you are going, you have the power to choose a good ending.
God has given us the gift of choice, which allows us to take an imperfect decision or horrible experience and exchange it for grace and peace by choosing his mercy and love. Inviting God to the center of your day is like installing an infallible GPS. We can choose to ignore the guidance and end up in a jam, but turning our focus back to God will reroute and offset any mistake, putting us back on track for a good ending.
The choice is always yours.
Psalm 119:1 | You are blessed when you stay on course, walking steadily on the road revealed by God. You are blessed when you follow his directions, doing your best to find him. (MSG)
Wanna pray?
God, today, help us to keep our minds focused on you. As we travel through this day, please be at the center of our thoughts, our words, and our actions so that the choices we make keep us on a solid, steady path. Put up signposts to guide us so that we know we’re on the right track.