Charles Stanley - Making Wise Decisions

Grounded in Scripture, this practical step-by-step plan won’t just help you choose wisely, it will lead you into greater intimacy with the Lord as you increasingly depend on Him and trust in His promises.

Life is composed of a series of decisions, which is why it’s so important to have a plan for making wise choices. This is something many people never consider, yet the Bible is filled with verses about prayer and discovering God’s will. If we follow a plan based on God’s Word, we’ll make decisions wisely and avoid the difficulties and heartaches that come from wrong choices.

A key to making wise decisions is found in Psalm 25:12, which says, “Who is the man who fears the Lord? He will instruct him in the way he should choose.” God’s guidance is promised to those who fear Him. This doesn’t mean we’re supposed to be afraid of Him, but that we have an attitude of reverence and absolute dependence upon Him.

However, many times we don’t depend on the Lord for guidance when we have a decision to make. Since God is omniscient, shouldn’t we come to Him first when we are facing an uncertain decision? Yet oftentimes we go to everybody else for advice, or we simply make up our own minds and do what we desire without regard to God’s will for us. We may think we’re smart enough to handle it ourselves, but we’re not. The Lord is willing to give us direction and answer our requests, but He may not do it in the manner or time we expect or desire.

To make wise choices, we need to rely on a plan based on God’s Word. The following steps will prepare us to receive and hear His guidance.