The Right Decision

There Matt, Olly, and I stand. In the paint aisle of Home Depot, trying to decide between Frosty Surf and Evening White. All the while Olly takes one paint card sample and places it over another paint sample of a different color. There her parents stand; going back and forth over which is the right color. Then it’s over to the bath section to choose just the right shower; then the flooring section to try to match the flooring we already have; then back to pick up the paint; then over to get other paint supplies which by the way has what feels like a thousand choices and I’m just talking about the rollers. Do we need smooth, semi smooth, the blue ones or the yellow ones? Don’t forget the paint trays! Do we need another paint brush? I DON’T KNOW, JUST GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!

Decisions, decisions, decisions.

When we got back to the car, Matt said, “Now I know how Isla feels.”

Rewind back a few months prior, I’m at my parents house and I get a call from my Dad. He had walked up to “the store” better known as Rocky’s, that is about two houses down the road from his own.

I knew something was up because a quick trip to the store with Grandpa turned into half an hour excursion. Upon answering the phone, I heard a screeching cry in the background and I knew what or better say who had caused the extension of this supposed short trip. I marched up to the store and walked through the door; grabbed my screaming daughter in my arms and marched her back down the road flailing and screaming pretty much the entire way. I discipline her and tell her she better never act like that again. 

Turns out what sparked that tantrum was that there were so many choices, and she was having a difficult time making a decision. She kept asking her sister her opinion about what she should choose, but deep down she didn’t feel that was the right choice, so she never could make a final decision. 

Present day, Matt empathizes with Isla in the Home Depot parking lot and I make a huge palm slap to my forehead. I know exactly how she feels.

How often do we jump to conclusions or judgments about any situation? Rather than sitting back and trying to understand what a person is going through. My thought is not very often.

We’ve had and still have so many decisions to make regarding this year alone. Maybe those decisions have been easy for you. If they have, you might be one of the blessed ones. 

But my guess for a lot of you is that some of those decisions have been hard, possibly even painful. Decisions are difficult for various reasons and those reasons vary from person to person. 

Today I was reminded of the truth that we can’t possibly understand what a person is going through unless you’ve “walked through the same fire.”

Friends, be kind and keep unnecessary opinions to yourself. It’s hard for everyone and a lot of decisions don’t just affect you. They affect the others around you.

Wear the mask, don’t wear the mask.

Social distance, don’t social distance.

Send your child to school, don’t send your child to school.

Believe it’s real, believe it’s a hoax.

Vote Republican, vote Democrat.

Support the police, defund the police.

Support all lives matter, support black lives matter.

Support standing for the anthem, support kneeling for the anthem.

The decision is yours to make. It is within your control. 

However let me stress, that your decision whether you like it or not, will affect someone else.  Maybe for the good, but it could be for the bad. So choose wisely in how you decide and how you respond to others whose decisions are different than yours.

I ate a heaping helping of crow today. It didn’t taste very good, but I’m glad I did. Otherwise, I might’ve missed a very valuable lesson that no doubt God wanted to teach me.

Will the decisions I’m making lead them to Jesus?

One thing I’ve learned is that the right decision always starts and ends with one person. Jesus.

With love,

Tori