Tag: decision making

book quote of the week
Don’t Wait for the Perfect Situation

Don’t Wait for the Perfect Situation

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The amount of choice you and I have in the modern world can be paralyzing. You go to a store to buy paint and you are greeted by 100 shades of every color you could want. Or maybe you search for a job online and find dozens of openings in locations throughout the world. Decision making becomes difficult when faced with an abundance of options. And just when you are about to make a decision, the question creeps into your mind “Why don’t you wait for a perfect situation or option? Surely it is out there somewhere!”

I recently began reading through a book called “Think for Yourself: Restoring Common Sense in an Age of Experts and Artificial Intelligence” by Vikram Mansharamani. The book so far focuses on how the amount of options you and I have each day leads us to trust experts, computer algorithms, and protocols to make decisions for us. “Think for Yourself” has some incredibly insightful points relevant to living in the modern world. Today, I want to look at one of the most impactful quotes in the beginning of the book.

This explosion of data dangles the possibility of an optimal decision, leaving us with constant low-grade regret and fear of missing out on the best option.

Think for Yourself, Vikram Mansharamani

What the quote means

More data, more problems

This quote contains one of the main propositions of the book: you believe that if you only had enough time and information, you could choose the perfect option. And “Think for Yourself” argues that this belief leads to a constant regret over the decisions you have made and keeps you consistently afraid of missing out on the perfect option.

Vikram points out in his book just how much data you and I have access to. When I say “data”, I mean “information that you can use to make a decision.” For example, let’s say you want to go out for dinner at a restaurant. You are not limited to the restaurants you currently know of. Instead, you can simply look up on your phone all the restaurants around you. Depending on where you are, you might get about 20 restaurants to choose from.

That is what Vikram means when he says you and I have access to an “explosion of data.” With a few clicks, you and I can see every restaurant option within 20 miles of us. At first, you might think this is a perfectly good thing. Isn’t more options better than less options? What I find most profound in the quote above is what Vikram says this amount of choice leads to: the “possibility of an optimal decision.”

What this means is you believe in the back of your mind that you can choose the perfect option if you have enough time and information. In our restaurant example, after seeing all the options, you start searching through them not just find a “good enough” place to eat dinner; you want to search the options to find the perfect, best, ideal restaurant for you at this exact moment in time.

This belief that the perfect decision is out there, just waiting to be discovered leads to two things according to “Think for Yourself.” First, it leads to low-grade regret. You can never be certain that you actually chose the best option out there. When you finally choose a restaurant and go to it, how can you know you chose the right one? And if you are disappointed in any way with your choice, isn’t that a sign that you didn’t find the perfect, ideal restaurant? Thinking this way leads to regretting the decisions you made.

Secondly, the belief you can find the perfect option leads you to have a “fear of missing.” Perhaps you look at the list of restaurants and you narrow it down to five top choices. How do you decide which to go to? Making this final decision can become difficult because you are afraid of choosing wrong. What if you pick the second best restaurant?

You have as much choice as you could want, but this choice ends up making it harder to decide in the end.

Why it is important

Don’t wait for the perfect situation or complete information to make a decision

What struck me as I read this quote is how frequently I have personally experienced this mindset in my life or in the lives of believers around me. My Church is close to several colleges, and college students frequently ask the questions “who should I marry?” and “Where should I work?” These are big decisions, and it is here where the desire to make a perfect decision creeps in.

Everyone, including Christians, is susceptible to the belief that the perfect is out there, just waiting for us. If you only have enough time and information, you can marry the perfect Christian, get the perfect job, serve Christ in the perfect way and so on. “Good enough” is seen as “settling for less.” And “Think for Yourself” is exactly right when it says this mindset leads to regret and fear of missing out.

The “who should I marry?” question is a great example. Scripture is clear Christians should marry only believers. But God does not spell out in the stars who you should marry. Furthermore, the Bible makes it clear that even the most godly person is nothing more than a redeemed sinner. But it is easy to think if you had enough time and information, you could find the absolute perfect, compatible, amazing match and gain nothing but happiness once you marry this person.

Such a mindset (which I believe comes from the world not the culture) will make you terrified of choosing the wrong person to date. It will will also cause you to start thinking “maybe I didn’t choose the right spouse” if you do marry that person and they disappoint you. This same pattern plays out in dozens of decisions you make whether it is as important as what job you choose or as mundane as what restaurant you eat at.

What is the solution? Don’t wait for the perfect situation. Even with all the technology and information you and I have access to, we still live in a fallen world. More than that, information does not become omniscience. God alone is all-knowing and all-wise.

To implicitly think you can make a perfect decision purely based on information is to ignore basic theology. Christians make decisions in faith with full dependence on the Lord.

Takeaways

1. Act in faith and humble dependence on the Lord

Don’t wait for the perfect situation to make a decision. Oftentimes, you don’t need more information, you need to trust the Lord and then act based on the information you have. There is a place for getting wisdom from a “multitude of counselors” and there is certainly a place for seeking the Lord in prayer and in the Word. But even if you ask every Christian in the entire planet, read every Word of the Bible and spend a month in earnest prayer you will still have to make a decision based on faith and trust in the Lord.

It is foolish to believe that you can figure out God’s secret will if you just wait long enough to make a decision. “The secret things belong to the Lord our God” Deuteronomy 29:29 says. At some point, you must act in faith, trusting that God is the one in control of your life, not you. You rely on the Lord, seek His will, and then act based on what you know to be true. This frees you focusing on finding the perfect decision to every choice you are faced with.

2. Trust that God is sovereign over your decisions

Now, you might be thinking “if I don’t wait for the perfect situation, won’t that mean I could choose the wrong thing?” To answer this question, I would remind you that God is sovereign over all things, including decisions you make. That does not mean you won’t sin or make a “wrong” decision. But that does mean as you act in faith, seeking to be as obedient to God as possible, you can live without regret or fear of missing out.

If God is working all your life together to make you more like Christ, you can truly “forget the things which are behind and reach forward to the things that are ahead.” What a freeing perspective! Instead of getting caught up in trying to make perfect decisions in every situation, you act in faith and trust that God is active in and over your life. This allows you to look back on the decisions you have made and look for God’s providential hand, rather than looking for where you chose the less-than-ideal.

3. God makes your paths straight, not more information

One of the most profound verses in Scripture is “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

There is a subtle idolatry which occurs when you think if you only had more information, you could make a perfect decision.

To put it another way, it is easy to think that if you looked through all the data, you could make your own paths straight. This is leaning on your own understanding.

Even in the “modern world” where you have access to a ton of information and can grow your “understanding”, you cannot make your paths straight. That is what I love about the quote from “Think for Yourself.” It is a reminder that all the information apart from God will just lead to regret and fear of making the wrong decision. The Bible offers a better way: acknowledging God in all your decisions.

You cannot make your own paths straight, but God can.

So don’t wait around for the perfect situation. Trust in the Lord, acknowledge Him in all your ways, then go and live in obedience to His revealed will.

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book quote of the week
Don’t Dismiss the Simple Answer

Don’t Dismiss the Simple Answer

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During COVID, I read a number of business and professional development books for my work. Some were useless, some where somewhat helpful, and others were excellent. The quote I want to analyze today is from “Tools of Titans” by Timothy Ferriss. I don’t recommend Christians run out and buy this book. But it had a few helpful takeaways, one of which I want to present to you today on the subject of looking for the simple answer.

“Tools of Titans” is essentially a book of interviews. The author interviewed people from every type of industry to get their thoughts on life and work. In one chapter, a quote stuck out to me that I still continue to think about after I finished the book:

Be sure to look for simple solutions. If the answer isn’t simple, it’s probably not the right answer.

Tools of Titans, Tim Ferriss

What the quote means

Complicated does not mean better

I am an over-thinker. When I have a problem, I want to go through every possible cause and effect and analyze each detail of the problem and potential solutions. This quote was a helpful reminder that I should look for the simple answer to my problem rather than something convoluted and complex.

This quote is essentially a re-statement of “Occam’s razor” which, in the scientific community where I work, means you generally choose the simplest explanation for a phenomena. Now, that does not mean the world is not complex or that sometimes a more complicated solution is necessary. It simply means a simple answer is normally easier to understand and test. This is because the simpler a solution is, the less assumptions you generally have to make.

The point here is in a complicated, dynamic world, a simple answer should generally be preferred over a complicated answer. As an over-arching principle, I think this is helpful even if sometimes you need to embrace complexity in certain situations.

Don’t make things complex for their own sake. Simplicity makes things clearer.

Why it is important

Seeking the simple answer can bring clarity to your life

More than ever, you and I live in a world of decisions. When you go to the grocery store, there is not one brand of cereal; there are 10 brands to choose from. You are told from a young age to live your dreams and be true to yourself, yet half the time you aren’t even sure what you want or what you want to do with your life. In an era of maddening choice, the simple answer can bring clarity.

And Scripture is full of simple answers. The Bible is complex, yes, incredibly detailed and profound. However, a lot of “life’s big problems” are given surprisingly simple answers in Scripture. Here are a few examples:

  • How can a person be saved? “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Simple belief in Jesus changes a soul’s eternal destiny.
  • What does the Lord require of me? “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” Simply loving the Lord and loving others are the two main principles revealed in the whole Old Testament.
  • How do I deal with all the fear and anxiety I struggle with? “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” The simple antidote to anxiety is prayer and thankfulness to the Lord.

And those are just a few off the top of my head. Scripture answers some of life’s tough problems and choices with a “simple answer.” Notice, simple does not mean easy to live out or easy to believe as true. But there is a refreshing clarity with which Scripture speaks on these issues. Just look at the book of Proverbs: in single sentences God communicates life principles to live by. They are simple, memorable, and proven throughout history.

Takeaways

1. When Scripture gives a simple answer, prefer it over the wisdom of the world

Scripture is often mocked by unbelievers in light of the complexity of the world. How can you believe repentance and faith in Jesus can make a difference in this world full of suffering? How can the gospel be the answer to all of humanity’s many complicated and multi-faceted problems? Why do Christians constantly give the answer “trust and wait on the Lord” to so many life circumstances?

People often resist the simple answers of Scripture because they are humbling. Most people (including myself) love being the “problem solver.” The person who through their great intellect and will makes the world a better place. But the Bible offers a humbling and pride-crushing worldview: humans are so completely in love with their own sin and rebellion that it took God Himself stepping into time and dying in order to save us. God brings salvation. Salvation is of the Lord. Not of man.

The answer the gospel gives to humanity’s problem is “look to Christ and live.” It isn’t try harder, be better, or work your way into a better future. The wisdom of the world would have you spend your whole life on these things. Thankfully, when Scripture speaks about life in this world, it speaks with a simple clarity that runs to one person: Jesus. He is the answer. So, when asked to make the choice between the different convoluted and contradictory solutions the world give to the problem, run instead to the simple clarity of Scripture.

2. Giving simple answers to other Christian’s problems might be the best thing for them.

In the “Tools of Titans” section this quote is taken from, there is a helpful example of the simple answer being the right one. How do you stay healthy and fit? As a kid, your probably got an answer like “eat your green vegetables.” A simple answer. Maybe as you grow up, instead of accepting this answer, you try out half a dozen diets and eating fads. Then it hits you: the simple answer your mom gave you as a kid was probably the right one all along (or at least a good summary of all the different diets).

Now, how do you apply this principle to your interactions with other Christians? After listening to another believer’s problem or struggle, take them back to the simple commands and promises of Scripture. The Bible has actual answers to our difficulties. And in God’s wisdom, these answers are generally direct and easy to understand. In our flesh, however, we often resist the answers God gives or question if God’s answer is the best one to give.

  • If someone shares with you their struggle with anxiety, isn’t it trite to say “be anxious for nothing?”
  • When someone is struggling with not having a spouse, is it helpful to remind them “godliness with contentment is great gain?”
  • Love your enemies? Aspire to live a simple and godly life? Pursue holiness? How can all these be the answers to our complicated life circumstances?

The problem is not with the simple commands and promises of Scripture. It is our own sinfulness and lack of faith which makes them seem insufficient.

God has given His people everything they need for life and godliness. That is a simple truth from 2 Peter. The question is, like all of Scripture, do you actually believe and trust the simple truths God has given you in His word? And if you trust them at a personal level, will you share those truths with other believers? Don’t be ashamed to give simple answers to other people’s struggles if those answers are from Scripture. Of course, you should be thoughtful and careful and loving in how you communicate Biblical truths. But if the answer God gives really is simple, don’t over-complicate things.

3. “What does God want me to do with my life?” probably has a simple answer.

The Christian University I attended for college often communicated to it’s students something like “go out, do big things for Jesus, and change the world.” It sounds good and inspiring, but the first question which comes to mind is “how?” No answer was given, and if students came up with their own answer, it often involved either making a lot of money, getting some level of fame, or dropping everything and going overseas for missions.

There are certain seasons of life, like post-college, where the question of “what should I do with my life?” becomes a constant one in your mind. And for good reason: no Christian should want to waste their life or make bad use of the time God has given them. But here is the reality: you don’t need some complicated plan to glorify God with your life. The simple answer to “what does God want me to do with my life?” is day-by-day faithfulness. You can become frozen trying to decide what you want to do until you accept the simple answer Scripture gives: “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

A lot of your problems in life come from not accepting, trusting, and living out the simple truths, promises, and commands of Scripture.

God’s word speaks clearly in our complicated world. It brings a singleness of purpose which nothing else in the world can give. If the simple answer is the right answer, seek those simple answers from Scripture. Don’t dismiss them. Your own convoluted understanding of life and events will probably end up leading you astray. God’s word, on the other hand, is a “lamp unto your feet, and a light unto your path.”

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I Didn’t Switch My College Major

I Didn’t Switch My College Major

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I graduated in May 2019. My college major was Mechanical Engineering. If you had asked me in the middle of getting my degree, I would have told you that I wanted desperately to change my major to Biblical studies. Engineering was tough. It took a lot of time. I wanted to be a pastor. Technology didn’t excite me. But I didn’t switch my college major.

Why didn’t I change to a major I would enjoy better? The immediate reason was the advice I got from the Elders at my Church. They said I should finish my degree. I could get a MDiv later if needed. Not everyone could get an engineering degree. Finish what I started. The advice frustrated me at the time, but it kept me in Mechanical engineering.

But the ultimate reason I didn’t switch my college major was God’s sovereign will in my life. Looking back now, I can see several reasons why He led me to stick with engineering. I know a lot of people who struggle with whether they should switch their college major or not. I hope some of the lessons I personally learned will help you or help you counsel those in your Church who are having to make tough decisions about college degrees and future career choices.

God has purposes beyond what you can see in the moment

A question I asked myself often in college was “why am I in engineering? Why did God lead me to choose this major starting out?” After all, when you are a new high school graduate, you barely know what the world is like, much less knowing what career you want to pursue. I chose engineering initially because it paid well and I was good at math. That was it. Nothing overly spiritual at all.

Then as I went through college, the Lord grew me through local Church involvement. I read rich theological books. My passion was for the Church, for teaching, for studying Scripture. I met one of my best friends who was getting his Biblical studies degree. And let me tell you, our conversations about the Word were far more engaging than anything I was doing or learning in engineering.

I asked God “Why would you have me in a degree I’m not passionate about?” I came to realize this was the wrong question to ask. God’s will, not my passion, is the ultimate driver in my life.

Looking back now, the question I should have asked was simply “Lord, how can I glorify you in my degree I am currently in?” I could have switched my college major at any time. But I didn’t. And it is only now, two years after graduation, that I begin to see God’s purposes for keeping me in engineering. Purposes which were invisible to me at the time. An engineering degree:

  • Allowed me to get a job out near my local Church so I could serve as a deacon there
  • Gave me an income to support a wife and family right out of college. Which is good, because I got married a year after graduating and my wife is having our first child this coming fall.
  • Enabled me to get a job I do, in fact, love. I never ever dreamed in a hundred years I would find an engineering job I would like. God proved me wrong.

There are more reasons, but these three serve to illustrate a principle.

Don’t judge where God has you based on what you know now or feel now. God has plans and purposes for your current circumstances beyond what you understand right now. Trust Him.

Serving God is a present-tense activity. And you can serve God no matter where you are at.

I was almost certain in college that the best way I could serve the Lord is by becoming a pastor as soon as humanly possible. Of course, I wasn’t really certain of God’s will. I was just certain of what I wanted. And what I wanted was to “do big things for Jesus” by becoming a pastor. It was so simple! If God would just let me get a bible degree, I would go off to seminary, then serve Him.

Serve God on His terms, not your own terms.

What God has taught me looking back is I can’t put conditions or timelines on when and how I would serve Him. Serving God is a present tense activity. Saying you will serve God tomorrow or sometime in the future isn’t obedience. Today, with what opportunities God has given you now, you must obey Scripture, follow Christ, and preach the gospel.

I thought I had to have a certain degree to serve the Lord well. That wasn’t true. All I needed was to wake up each day and say “Lord, how would you have me glorify you with this day?”

I know a lot of people who switched their majors based on some abstract idea that a certain major would equip them to serve God better. Maybe that was true. But having graduated, I find that the thing you need most for serving God is present-tense obedience. Specific skills might help you to be sure.

But at the end of the day don’t switch your college major because you feel that you need a certain one thing you desire to serve God. When I look at my local Church, I see a combination of dozens of people who have different vocations, callings, family situations and backgrounds. Each one can serve the Lord. Today. Why? Because God has already given us everything we need to serve Him.

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence

2 Peter 1:3, ESV

So don’t stress out about what major your are currently in or which one you want to change to. Focus on serving God in the present and He will direct you.

The Church benefits from all kinds of skills, not just teaching and preaching

As I said before, the local Church is filled with people from different backgrounds. I didn’t switch my college major to Biblical studies, so now my local Church has a member who is trained as an engineer. Is that type of training a waste? Is it a purely “secular” vocation? Are my skills inapplicable to the Church?

No. I would argue the local Church benefits from a large collection of skills, vocations, and backgrounds. The Bible presents both unity and diversity as glorifying to the Lord.

There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

Ephesians 4:4-7, ESV

Christianity does not erase your individuality, but nor does it make your individuality the most important thing.

Let me give an example. A couple months ago, the deacons at my Church decided to fix a ramp at my Church. Now, none of the deacons have any background in construction or painting. But the Lord brought several skilled men to our Church who do have those skills. And those skills were leveraged to bless the body.

So the question is: what if those men had not spent the time to develop those skills? What if everyone in the body only had MDiv’s and nothing else? I would argue that would be a disservice to the Church body. The individual skills God gives to each believer are for building up His Church. And those skills include “secular” ones.

Ask yourself “How might the skills from this degree bless the body? How can I do the most good to the most amount of people, believers and nonbelievers?”

I have learned that mechanical engineers can bless the Church, serve the Lord, and worship Christ just as much as any other college degree. God does not call all of us to the same thing. And praise God for it! It creates a beautiful diversity in the Church!

Conclusion

There are more lessons I learned when I look back on my college experience. But ultimately, I am glad I didn’t switch my college major. God used the struggle, the perseverance, and the (often) disappointment of engineering to shape me into who I am today. I realize now God had larger purposes than I could see in college. Sticking with engineering forced me to focus on serving the Lord with what I had, not with what I wanted. And finally, I see now God has given me unique skills to serve the local body. Skills I wouldn’t have if I didn’t complete an engineering degree.

Whether you end up sticking with or changing you college major, whether you stay in your current job or leave it, just remember what Paul told the Church in Corinth:

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 10:31, ESV

Glorify God, pursue Christ, and love the local Body where you are at. God will take care of the rest.

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