Freedom of Choice Isn't Free
09/17/10 05:58 Filed in: Decisions
The difficult decisions are the crucible in which our character is formed. Our thoughts become words. Our words become decisions. Our decisions become actions. Our actions become habits. Our habits become character. And our character becomes destiny.
Freedom of choice is the greatest gift of all. But it isn't free.
Every choice we make comes at a price. Every decision we make involves obvious trade-offs as well as unintended and unforeseen consequences. If we knew how every decision would turn out, it wouldn't be a matter of choice, it would be a foregone conclusion.
We exercise the power of choice every day in countless ways. But most of the time, we don’t have to think through our choices. We simply rely on intuition and trial and error when the consequences of a mistake are negligible and easily corrected.
However, when faced with a choice of some magnitude, we have to think things through or be prepared to pay a steep price for any mistake we might make in haste. It could be an important choice that we gladly make, such as getting married, having a baby, accepting a better job or moving to another city and starting a new way of life. But it could also be a choice that we’re forced to make as a result of a natural disaster, mounting debts, sickness, divorce or some other personal calamity. In any case, when the situation is too big to ignore, we have to pause and think it through in order to make a smart choice.
If things don't work out the way we expected, we always have one more choice to make. That is, we get to decide how we feel about the outcome. We can feel bitter or better. We can choose to pout or pray. We can make another choice.
The most troublesome choices are the ones that affect other people. If we make the wrong choice, we are not the only one to pay for our mistake. Those difficult decisions take many forms. They may mean choosing between becoming a whistle blower or protecting the jobs of our co-workers. They may mean choosing whether or not to bring an at-risk pregnancy to full term. They may mean having to tell an elderly parent that you can no longer care for him or her; that it is time to move into a nursing home.
The difficult decisions are the crucible in which our character is formed. Our thoughts become words. Our words become decisions. Our decisions become actions. Our actions become habits. Our habits become character. And our character becomes destiny.
If a decision is big enough to think through, it's important enough to pray through.
Every choice we make comes at a price. Every decision we make involves obvious trade-offs as well as unintended and unforeseen consequences. If we knew how every decision would turn out, it wouldn't be a matter of choice, it would be a foregone conclusion.
We exercise the power of choice every day in countless ways. But most of the time, we don’t have to think through our choices. We simply rely on intuition and trial and error when the consequences of a mistake are negligible and easily corrected.
However, when faced with a choice of some magnitude, we have to think things through or be prepared to pay a steep price for any mistake we might make in haste. It could be an important choice that we gladly make, such as getting married, having a baby, accepting a better job or moving to another city and starting a new way of life. But it could also be a choice that we’re forced to make as a result of a natural disaster, mounting debts, sickness, divorce or some other personal calamity. In any case, when the situation is too big to ignore, we have to pause and think it through in order to make a smart choice.
If things don't work out the way we expected, we always have one more choice to make. That is, we get to decide how we feel about the outcome. We can feel bitter or better. We can choose to pout or pray. We can make another choice.
The most troublesome choices are the ones that affect other people. If we make the wrong choice, we are not the only one to pay for our mistake. Those difficult decisions take many forms. They may mean choosing between becoming a whistle blower or protecting the jobs of our co-workers. They may mean choosing whether or not to bring an at-risk pregnancy to full term. They may mean having to tell an elderly parent that you can no longer care for him or her; that it is time to move into a nursing home.
The difficult decisions are the crucible in which our character is formed. Our thoughts become words. Our words become decisions. Our decisions become actions. Our actions become habits. Our habits become character. And our character becomes destiny.
If a decision is big enough to think through, it's important enough to pray through.
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