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A Loop or a Straight Line?
The will of man is safe only when united with the will of God (Mind, Character, and Personality, vol. 2, p. 692).
The tempted one needs to understand the true force of the will. This is the governing power in the nature of manthe power of decision, of choice. Everything depends on the right action of the will. Desires for goodness and purity are right, as far as they go; but if we stop here, they avail nothing. Many will go down to ruin while hoping and desiring to overcome their evil propensities. They do not yield the will to God. They do not choose to serve Him (Mind, Character, and Personality, vol. 2, p.685).
In this conflict of righteousness against unrighteousness we can be successful only by divine aid. Our finite will must be brought into submission to the will of the Infinite; the human will must be blended with the divine. This will bring the Holy Spirit to our aid, and every conquest will tend to the recovery of God's purchased possession, to the restoration of His image in the soul (Mind, Character, and Personality, vol. 2, p. 692).
When Satan is permitted to mold the will, he uses it to accomplish his ends. . . . He stirs up the evil propensities, awakening unholy passions and ambitions. He says, All this power, these honors and riches and sinful pleasures, will I give thee; but his conditions are that integrity shall be yielded, conscience blunted. Thus he degrades the human faculties and brings them into captivity to sin (Mind, Character, and Personality, vol. 2, pp. 686, 687).
A LOOP OR A STRAIGHT LINE?
Cedric the Cessna was a little airplane, but he was growing and learning more each day. In fact, he was growing and learning more each day. In fact, his fondest hope was that he would someday become a huge airliner that would work for United Airlines or British Airways. He would take people to exciting places all over the world.
But one day he kind of got into a playful mood and, just on a lark, tried a barrel roll. It was fun, so he tried a loop the loop. This gave him a funny feeling in the pit of his baggage compartment, but he liked it. As it turned out, he became so interested in stunt flying that he lost his interest in becoming an airliner.
Who needs traffic control, anyway? Cedric asked a friend one day. All the tower does is give me a bunch of orders that Im supposed to follow. It destroys my self-expression, my freedom!
So Cedric began to experiment more and more. He tried new techniques that caused dizziness in the control panel and a flopping sensation in the cargo hold. His friends worried about him, of course, and they warned him of the dangers of stunt flying. He heard occasionally of other aircraft who, while doing the stunts, had crashed into lakes or mountainsides.
Just poor judgment, Cedric said, dismissing his friends concerns.
But the one day something happened to Cedric. No, he didnt crashas you might expect. . . . Just as he was about to leave the airport for another afternoon of fun in the great blue sky, a trim Lear jet swooped seemingly out of nowhere and touched lightly down on the Tarmac. The sleek, powerful jet happened to taxi right by Cedric as he was waiting for his turn to take off.
There was something about the Lear jet that immediately caught the little airplanes attention. He has a purposeful look, an air about him that said he knew where he was going.
Where are you from? Cedric asked in an attempt to make conversation.
Just in from London, the Lear jet answered. And what a time we had there! Where are you off to?
Cedric gulped. For the first time in a long while he remembered his former goal of going to places like Tahiti and Rio de Janeiro and Beijing and Stockholm. He hadnt been as far as the city limits, much less to one of those exotic places on the map. Just going up for a little spin, he said. No place special. Im going to try a few hammerhead stalls today.
Are you kidding? the Lear jet asked. Sounds pretty dangerous to me. And besides, there are places I want to go. The stunts may be thrilling for a while, but when youre through, youre right back at the same airport.
Cedric hadnt ever thought about stunt flying that way before. He had to admit that barrel rolls werent taking him anywhere he really wanted to go. And he also had to admit that stunts could be dangerous.
Then Cedric remembered what the flight instructor had repeated several times in navigating class: A straight line is the shortest distance between two points. If Im ever going to get to places like Tahiti or Rio, the airplane thought, maybe Id better begin to fly straight.
And thats what he did. He began with a flight plan to the seat of the neighboring county. That went pretty well. When he arrived, he felt for the first time in a long while that he had accomplished something important. It wasnt London, exactly, but he had set a goal and achieved it. From that day on, Cedric adopted a completely new philosophy: Just Fly Straight! And before long, he was really going places. (Gary B. Swanson, The Moose, the Goose, and the Kingdom of God [Review & Herald Publishing Association, Hagerstown, MD, 2000], pp. 112-114.)
- Why do you think Cedric made the choices that he did?
- What made him re-evaluate his choices?
- What were some of the results of Cedrics starting to make good decisions and setting goals?
- Did Henry understand how to make good decisions?
Every child should understand the true force of the will. He should be led to see how great is the responsibility involved in this gift. The will is . . . the power of decision, or choice (Child Guidance, p. 209).
There is no greater deception than for man to suppose that in any difficulty he can find a better guide than God, a wiser counselor in any emergency, a stronger defense under any circumstance (Child Guidance, p. 116).
HERES WHAT I THINK
Its Sunday afternoon. Nothing much to do. You and your friends are just hanging out in the mall. Its boring. Youve done this a thousand times. Then someone dares another to do something stupid. Everyone has a good laugh. But then the dares escalate. Each new one gets tougher and more dangerous. Excitement builds. Its your turn. You are dared to steal a CD from a store.
How will your choice affect your friendships? How will your decision affect the way you feel about yourself?
Go to http://guidemagazine.org/rtf to post your answers. Your thoughts and feelings may seem clearer to you when you write them down, so weve provided space for you here as well. You may also wish to share them with your class later. Be upfront and honest.
There are 2½ chapters of 1 Samuel to read in this lesson. You should have already started reading this story Sabbath Afternoon. There are questions at the end of Sabbath afternoon that you should answer when you have finished reading. Dont forget the Monday questions too. You are reading about David as a young shepherd boy and as a king. You are reading about a man who made choices. There are questions at the end of the lesson. The questions are meant to help you think about what you have just read.
1 Samuel 17 (The Message)
Goliath
The Philistines drew up their troops for battle. They deployed them at Socoh in Judah, and set up camp between Socoh and Azekah at Ephes Dammim. Saul and the Israelites came together, camped at Oak Valley, and spread out their troops in battle readiness for the Philistines. The Philistines were on one hill, the Israelites on the opposing hill, with the valley between them.
A giant nearly ten feet tall stepped out from the Philistine line into the open, Goliath from Gath. He had a bronze helmet on his head and was dressed in armor126 pounds of it! He wore bronze shin guards and carried a bronze sword. His spear was like a fence railthe spear tip alone weighed over fifteen pounds. His shield bearer walked ahead of him. Goliath stood there and called out to the Israelite troops, Why bother using your whole army? Am I not Philistine enough for you? And you're all committed to Saul, aren't you? So pick your best fighter and pit him against me. If he gets the upper hand and kills me, the Philistines will all become your slaves. But if I get the upper hand and kill him, you'll all become our slaves and serve us. I challenge the troops of Israel this day. Give me a man. Let us fight it out together!
When Saul and his troops heard the Philistine's challenge, they were terrified and lost all hope.
Enter David. He was the son of Jesse the Ephrathite from Bethlehem in Judah. Jesse, the father of eight sons, was himself too old to join Saul's army. Jesse's three oldest sons had followed Saul to war. The names of the three sons who had joined up with Saul were Eliab, the firstborn; next, Abinadab; and third, Shammah. David was the youngest son. While his three oldest brothers went to war with Saul, David went back and forth from attending to Saul to tending his father's sheep in Bethlehem.
Each morning and evening for forty days, Goliath took his stand and made his speech.
One day, Jesse told David his son, Take this sack of cracked wheat and these ten loaves of bread and run them down to your brothers in the camp. And take these ten wedges of cheese to the captain of their division. Check in on your brothers to see whether they are getting along all right, and let me know how they're doingSaul and your brothers, and all the Israelites in their war with the Philistines in the Oak Valley.
David was up at the crack of dawn and, having arranged for someone to tend his flock, took the food and was on his way just as Jesse had directed him. He arrived at the camp just as the army was moving into battle formation, shouting the war cry. Israel and the Philistines moved into position, facing each other, battle-ready. David left his bundles of food in the care of a sentry, ran to the troops who were deployed, and greeted his brothers. While they were talking together, the Philistine champion, Goliath of Gath, stepped out from the front lines of the Philistines, and gave his usual challenge. David heard him.
The Israelites, to a man, fell back the moment they saw the gianttotally frightened. The talk among the troops was, Have you ever seen anything like this, this man openly and defiantly challenging Israel? The man who kills the giant will have it made. The king will give him a huge reward, offer his daughter as a bride, and give his entire family a free ride.
Five Smooth Stones
David, who was talking to the men standing around him, asked, What's in it for the man who kills that Philistine and gets rid of this ugly blot on Israel's honor? Who does he think he is, anyway, this uncircumcised Philistine, taunting the armies of God-Alive?
They told him what everyone was saying about what the king would do for the man who killed the Philistine.
Eliab, his older brother, heard David fraternizing with the men and lost his temper: What are you doing here! Why aren't you minding your own business, tending that scrawny flock of sheep? I know what you're up to. You've come down here to see the sights, hoping for a ringside seat at a bloody battle!
What is it with you? replied David. All I did was ask a question. Ignoring his brother, he turned to someone else, asked the same question, and got the same answer as before.
The things David was saying were picked up and reported to Saul. Saul sent for him.
Master, said David, don't give up hope. I'm ready to go and fight this Philistine.
Saul answered David, You can't go and fight this Philistine. You're too young and inexperiencedand he's been at this fighting business since before you were born.
David said, I've been a shepherd, tending sheep for my father. Whenever a lion or bear came and took a lamb from the flock, Id go after it, knock it down, and rescue the lamb. If it turned on me, Id grab it by the throat, wring its neck, and kill it. Lion or bear, it made no differenceI killed it. And I'll do the same to this Philistine pig who is taunting the troops of God-Alive. God, who delivered me from the teeth of the lion and the claws of the bear, will deliver me from this Philistine.
Saul said, Go. And God help you!
Then Saul outfitted David as a soldier in armor. He put his bronze helmet on his head and belted his sword on him over the armor. David tried to walk but he could hardly budge.
David told Saul, I can't even move with all this stuff on me. I'm not used to this. And he took it all off.
Then David took his shepherd's staff, selected five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the pocket of his shepherd's pack, and with his sling in his hand approached Goliath.
As the Philistine paced back and forth, his shield bearer in front of him, he noticed David. He took one look down on him and sneereda mere youngster, apple-cheeked and peach-fuzzed.
The Philistine ridiculed David. Am I a dog that you come after me with a stick? And he cursed him by his gods.
Come on, said the Philistine. I'll make road kill of you for the buzzards. I'll turn you into a tasty morsel for the field mice.
David answered, You come at me with sword and spear and battle-ax. I come at you in the name of God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel's troops, whom you curse and mock. This very day God is handing you over to me. I'm about to kill you, cut off your head, and serve up your body and the bodies of your Philistine buddies to the crows and coyotes. The whole earth will know that there's an extraordinary God in Israel. And everyone gathered here will learn that God doesn't save by means of sword or spear. The battle belongs to Godhe's handing you to us on a platter!
That roused the Philistine, and he started toward David. David took off from the front line, running toward the Philistine. David reached into his pocket for a stone, slung it, and hit the Philistine hard in the forehead, embedding the stone deeply. The Philistine crashed, facedown in the dirt.
That's how David beat the Philistinewith a sling and a stone. He hit him and killed him. No sword for David!
Then David ran up to the Philistine and stood over him, pulled the giant's sword from its sheath, and finished the job by cutting off his head. When the Philistines saw that their great champion was dead, they scattered, running for their lives.
The men of Israel and Judah were up on their feet, shouting! They chased the Philistines all the way to the outskirts of Gath and the gates of Ekron. Wounded Philistines were strewn along the Shaaraim road all the way to Gath and Ekron. After chasing the Philistines, the Israelites came back and looted their camp. David took the Philistine's head and brought it to Jerusalem. But the giant's weapons he placed in his own tent.
When Saul saw David go out to meet the Philistine, he said to Abner, commander of the army, Tell me about this young man's family.
Abner said, For the life of me, O King, I don't know.
The king said, Well, find out the lineage of this raw youth.
As soon as David came back from killing the Philistine, Abner brought him, the Philistine's head still in his hand, straight to Saul.
Saul asked him, Young man, whose son are you?
Im the son of your servant Jesse, said David, the one who lives in Bethlehem.
- Was David trying to show off?
- Was David shocked that the Israelite army was afraid of the giant Goliath?
- What made David unafraid to go up against Goliath?
- Did David make an informed choice?
- For whom was David fighting?
2 Samuel 11:1-23 (New International Version)
David and Bathsheba
In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king's men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.
One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, Isn't this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite? Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (She had purified herself from her uncleanness.) Then she went back home. The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, I am pregnant.
So David sent this word to Joab: Send me Uriah the Hittite. And Joab sent him to David. When Uriah came to him, David asked him how Joab was, how the soldiers were and how the war was going. Then David said to Uriah, Go down to your house and wash your feet. So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king was sent after him. But Uriah slept at the entrance to the palace with all his master's servants and did not go down to his house.
When David was told, Uriah did not go home, he asked him, Haven't you just come from a distance? Why didn't you go home?
Uriah said to David, The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my master Joab and my lord's men are camped in the open fields. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and lie with my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!
Then David said to him, Stay here one more day, and tomorrow I will send you back. So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. At David's invitation, he ate and drank with him, and David made him drunk. But in the evening Uriah went out to sleep on his mat among his master's servants; he did not go home.
In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah. In it he wrote, Put Uriah in the front line where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.
So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest defenders were. When the men of the city came out and fought against Joab, some of the men in David's army fell; moreover, Uriah the Hittite died.
Joab sent David a full account of the battle. He instructed the messenger: When you have finished giving the king this account of the battle, the king's anger may flare up, and he may ask you, Why did you get so close to the city to fight? Didn't you know they would shoot arrows from the wall? Who killed Abimelech son of Jerub-Besheth? Didn't a woman throw an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died in Thebez? Why did you get so close to the wall? If he asks you this, then say to him, Also, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.
The messenger set out, and when he arrived he told David everything Joab had sent him to say. The messenger said to David, The men overpowered us and came out against us in the open, but we drove them back to the entrance to the city gate. Then the archers shot arrows at your servants from the wall, and some of the king's men died. Moreover, your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead.
David told the messenger, Say this to Joab: Don't let this upset you; the sword devours one as well as another. Press the attack against the city and destroy it. Say this to encourage Joab.
When Uriah's wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. After the time of mourning was over, David had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing David had done displeased the LORD.
2 Samuel 12 (New International Version)
Nathan Rebukes David
The LORD sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said, There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle, but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms. It was like a daughter to him.
"Now a traveler came to the rich man, but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him. Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and prepared it for the one who had come to him.
David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to die! He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did such a thing and had no pity.
Then Nathan said to David, You are the man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave your master's house to you, and your master's wives into your arms. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah. And if all this had been too little, I would have given you even more. Why did you despise the word of the LORD by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own. You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.
This is what the LORD says: Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.
Then David said to Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD.
Nathan replied, The LORD has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. But because by doing this you have made the enemies of the LORD show utter contempt, the son born to you will die.
After Nathan had gone home, the LORD struck the child that Uriah's wife had borne to David, and he became ill. David pleaded with God for the child. He fasted and went into his house and spent the nights lying on the ground. The elders of his household stood beside him to get him up from the ground, but he refused, and he would not eat any food with them.
On the seventh day the child died. David's servants were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they thought, While the child was still living, we spoke to David but he would not listen to us. How can we tell him the child is dead? He may do something desperate.
David noticed that his servants were whispering among themselves and he realized the child was dead. Is the child dead? he asked.
"Yes, they replied, he is dead.
Then David got up from the ground. After he had washed, put on lotions and changed his clothes, he went into the house of the LORD and worshiped. Then he went to his own house, and at his request they served him food, and he ate.
His servants asked him, Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept, but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!
He answered, While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to me and let the child live. But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.
- David made a choicewas it a good one?
- What was the result of Davids choice?
- Was David the only person who was affected by his choice? How does this inform how we make decisions?
- Did Gods love for David change with each decision that David made? Explain.
- Does Gods love for us change if we make a bad choice?
Psalm 119:104-106 (New International Version)
I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every wrong path.
Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light for my path.
I have taken an oath and confirmed it,
that I will follow your righteous laws.
God has given us His Word as a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. Its teachings have a vital bearing on our prosperity in all the relations of life. Even in our temporal affairs it will be a wiser guide than any other counselor (In Heavenly Places, p. 135).
Those who make God their guide and His Word their counselor, behold the lamp of life. God's living oracles guide their feet in straight paths. Those who are thus led do not dare to judge the Word of God, but ever hold that His Word judges them. They get their faith and religion from the Word of the living God. It is the guide and counselor that directs their path. The Word is indeed a light to their feet and a lamp to their path. They walk under the direction of the Father of light, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. He whose tender mercies are over all His works makes the path of the just as a shining light, which shineth more and more unto the perfect day (In Heavenly Places, p. 132).
I implore you to trust wholly in God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. James 4:7, 8. The Christian life is a life of conflict, or self-denial and conquest. It is a continual battle and a march. Every act of obedience to Christ, every victory obtained over self, is a step in the march to glory and final victory. Take Christ for your Guide and He will lead you safely along. The pathway may be rough and thorny and the ascents steep, requiring toil. You may have to press on when weary, when you long for rest. You may have to fight on when faint and hope on when discouraged, but, with Christ as your Guide, you cannot lose the path of immortal life. You cannot fail to reach the exalted seat by the side of your Guide, whose own feet trod the rough path before you, evening the way for your feet. If you follow pride and selfish ambition you will find it pleasant at first, but the end is pain and sorrow. You may follow selfishness, which will promise you much but will poison and embitter your life. To follow Christ is safe. He will not suffer the powers of darkness to hurt one hair of your head. Trust in your Redeemer and you are safe (Our High Calling, p. 25).
SO WHAT?
Rather than make a choice of one over the other, its so much easier to be on both sides. Youve got parents expecting one thing of you and friends expecting another. You know what is right and what is wrongusually its obvious. But life is so much easier if you can just keep everyone happy. Right?
You are not a child anymore. Where you are in life is a transititionis it the gray area between childhood and adulthood, and it begins now, in your early teen years. Lets be honestit is not always a fun time. Its a time when you have to be responsible for the decisions you make. Make the wrong choice; its not the end of the world. Just be big enough to face the consequences. Every choice has a consequencea result. Thing about it.
So what are you going to do with all this freedom to make your own decisions? Do you feel as if you could use some help, but you cant admit that to your friends or your parents? Its OK. Everyone needs guidancesomeone who knows what theyre talking about to tell them This is what will happen if you go through Door A. But Door B will get you in deep trouble. Just as the President of the United States has a national security adviser who helps him make the best decision, let God and His Word be your adviser.
Who better to take into your confidence? Who better to trust? Who else really knows you? Try God as your personal adviser. Seriously, your choices may not always be comfortable, may not always feel right. But for nowjust hang onto the fact that with God, you are on the right track, even when it isnt very comfortable.
- Will God guide you if you ask Him?
- What Word is a lamp for your feet and a light to your path?
- How can you make God your personal adviser? (If you dont know or youre not sure, ask a parent or Sabbath School teacher, someone that you trust and can talk with.)
Look up the texts. Match the text with the verses. (These verses are found in the New International Version of the Bible)
- James 1:5-8 _____________
- Proverbs 8:10 _______________
- Ephesians 5:15 _____________
- Joshua 24:15 ____________
- 1 Corinthians 16:13,14 ___________
- Matthew 7:13,14 _________
- Romans 12:2 ___________
- Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed. . . .
- But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve. . . .
- If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault. . . .
- Choose my instruction instead of silver, . . .
- Be very careful, then, how you livenot as unwise but as wise. . . .
- Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love.
- Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
Isaiah 30:21 (New International Version)
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.
Psalm 32:7, 8 (New International Version)
You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble
and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Selah
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you and watch over you.
We lose many precious blessings by failing to bring our needs and cares and sorrows to our Saviour. He is the wonderful Counselor. He looks upon His church with intense interest and with a heart full of tender sympathy. He enters into the depth of our necessities. But our ways are not always His ways. He sees the result of every action, and He asks us to trust patiently in His wisdom, not in the supposedly wise plans of our own making
If men will walk in the path that God has marked out for them, they will have a counselor whose wisdom is far above any human wisdom. Joshua was a wise general because God was his guide. The first sword that Joshua used was the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God (Conflict and Courage, p. 116).
Isaiah 48:17, 18 (New International Version)
This is what the LORD says
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
I am the LORD your God,
who teaches you what is best for you,
who directs you in the way you should go.
If only you had paid attention to my commands,
your peace would have been like a river,
your righteousness like the waves of the sea.
WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH ME?
Remember the story of Jonah? He made some really bad choices. But in spite of Jonahs choices, God didnt give up on him. God chased after him in a storm.
Jesus loves you so much that even when you are in the middle of something that you know you shouldnt be involved in, He is right thereready to rescue you when you call. He does this because He totally understands why you are doing the stuff you do. Hes been in your shoes. Hes faced the pressures.
All Hes asking you to do is to take that big, courageous step, and try to do things His wayjust once. And see how it makes you feel.
And always rememberJesus wont give up on you. He promises to be there when you call on Him for help. Just dont put it off until you dont even care anymore. Remember, the choice is always yours.
What are some steps you should take for making good decisions? (Refer to Todays Reading)
Who will help you make good decisions if you ask?
If we are making plans, what should we do before we act on them?
How does laying our plans out to God in prayer help us make good decisions?
We all need a guide through the many strait places in life, as much as the sailor needs a pilot over the sandy bar or up the rocky river; and where is this guide to be found? We point the reader to the Bible. Inspired of God, written by holy men, it points out with great clearness and precision the duties of both old and young. It elevates the mind, and softens the heart, and imparts gladness and joy to the spirit. The Bible presents a perfect standard of character; it is an infallible guide under all circumstances, even to the end of the journey of life (Ellen G. White, The Watchman, September 12, 1905).
The Lord has a great work to be done in our world. To every man He has given His work for man to do. But man is not to make man his guide, lest he be led astray; this is always unsafe. While Bible religion embodies the principles of activity in service, at the same time there is the necessity of asking for wisdom daily from the Source of all wisdom. What was Joshua's victory? Thou shalt meditate upon the Word of God day and night. The word of the Lord came to Joshua just before he passed over Jordan. . . . This was the secret of Joshua's victory. He made God his Guide (Conflict and Courage, p. 116).
What is the best way to be happy and safe when we are making plans and choices?
Does God care about what we plan to do today or tomorrow? Does He care if we want to go swimming today, play soccer, go to camp, or visit grandparents? Explain.
Where can we go to find answers to our problems, questions, choices?
HOW DOES IT WORK?
All right. Theres no magical formula that will help you make the right choices in life, but with Gods help and some simple guidelines, it wont be so stressful. Try this simple decision-making plan. It is the product of an earliteen and his dadto keep both parties sane. It works for them; maybe itll work for you as well.
Does the Bible clearly teach against it? |
Yes |
No |
Does it affect you or those around you negatively? |
Yes |
No |
Is it immoral, disrespectful, or irreversible in any way? |
Yes |
No |
If the answers are all No, go for it!