Decisions, Decisions

Laura
Laura

I’m facing some big choices for the twins’ preschool next year.

Laura
Anna
Anna

Oh yeah, I know you’ve been struggling with that for a while now.  

Anna
Ashley
Ashley

As a very indecisive person, I can’t imagine how long it would take me to make a double decision. Probably why God didn’t give me twins. Lol ?

Ashley
Laura
Laura

Ha, Ashley! I feel like this decision is HUGE.  It is like whatever my hubby and I decide is about to be a life-changer for the boys.  It’s a lot of pressure.

I just want what’s best for them, but how do I know what is best?

Laura
Anna
Anna

Oh yeah, I can relate to the feeling SO well. I agonized about a decision like that recently for over a year and a half! It’s like you’re on a merry-go-round, getting dizzier and dizzier!

So what did you do?

Anna
Laura
Laura

I did everything I thought I should do.  I gathered all the information from their current teacher, from the preschool director, from their future principal.  I even talked to a couple adult twins, one who I barely knew!  And I introduced myself to perfect stranger, another mom at a restaurant who had twins and asked her how she decided!

Laura
Anna
Anna

You go girl! Did you feel like God was leading you one way or the other with all that info?

Anna
Laura
Laura

Well, I don’t know! I have been praying of course, and trying to listen, but I just couldn’t decide!  Do I keep the boys together in the same class for their second year of preschool?  Or do I split them up to prepare for splitting them up down the road?  Do I have to split them up?

Laura
Anna
Anna

Ahh, you were still on the merry-go-round. ?  

Sometimes I feel like when I’m going round and round on a decision and can’t seem to “hear” anything from God about it, it’s not that He hasn’t answered me. It’s more that He already did, and I just wasn’t listening…

Anna
Laura
Laura

Or couldn’t listen!  Merry-go-round thinking makes me so disoriented.  God is standing still off to the side with the answer.  We zoom past Him, but He’s too blurry to see quite right, and we certainly can’t hear Him over that organ music!  I need to get off this good-for-nothing thing!

Laura
Anna
Anna

Anna
Ashley
Ashley

Maybe they could set that carousel organ music to a praise and worship tune? Lol! So as you’re spinning, you’re at least hearing somewhere in your mind, “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound.” ?

Ashley
Laura
Laura

???

That would be nice. Thankfully last week I went to a women’s conference at a nearby church and one of the speakers said something that really gave me peace.  It helped me hop off this merry-go-round!

Laura
Ashley
Ashley

I love this visual so much–there’s a reason God tell us to “be still.”  Until we’re still, we will totally miss that He’s standing there trying to get our attention. Sidenote: being still is easier said than done.

Ashley
Laura
Laura

Right, because when we finally jump off and orient ourselves, we can find Him, focus on Him, and hear what He is saying about any situation.

Laura
Anna
Anna

So what about this truth that the Lord dropped on you?

Anna
Laura
Laura

“He is the answer to every question.”

 

Laura
Anna
Anna

Now I’m really intrigued! What does that mean?  

Anna
Laura
Laura

I know… elusive, right?  

Laura
Anna
Anna

Umm, yes. A little. ?

Anna
Laura
Laura

I’ve been looking at this backwards.  I’ve been focused on the choices, and I need to focus on the answer–God!

Laura
Ashley
Ashley

I LOVE THIS SO MUCH! I am the same way Laura, I always am looking for specific answers when He is the specific answer.  I want road signs and road maps, details and directions, and He’s like “don’t you realize, you’re already standing right in front of the place you’re desperately trying to find!”

Ashley
Laura
Laura

Exactly! When she said that, I felt in my heart like He was saying to me, who did I make these boys to be?  Focus on ME instead of all the details.

Laura
Anna
Anna

Yeah, I’m with ya!

Anna
Laura
Laura

So when I came home from the conference I asked God to help me focus on Him as I considered what to do.  I asked Him to remind me about who these little creations of His are.  What’s special about them?  What makes them strong?  Where do they need to brave?  

Laura
Anna
Anna

Hmm, good questions.

Anna
Laura
Laura

Since the womb, my prayer for them has been to share equally.  I prayed that they would even share the nutrients from my umbilical cord equally.  And the moment they stopped doing that, they were born (6 weeks early)!

Laura
Ashley
Ashley

Wow! That is crazy! Twins fascinate me.

Ashley
Laura
Laura

You have no idea!!? So I think God being the answer means to make decisions for them based on who He made them to be.  

Laura
Anna
Anna

OK! So it sounds like you’re kind-of zooming out from the decision, pulling back to see the bigger picture and looking at what you know to be true.

Anna
Laura
Laura

And do you want to know what I think is His best for them right now?  Keep them together.  Keep showing them how to share everything. They are best buddies!  They do not compete or keep each other from learning, in fact they encourage each other to learn and to play! And as long as it’s working for us now, I feel like I should let them continue to enjoy each other.

Laura
Ashley
Ashley

I loved getting to hear your process of coming to that decision.  It was like a big blueprint of “connect the dots” from one of God’s truths to the next, and before you knew it, you had a picture of the answer!

Ashley
Anna
Anna

Whew! Doesn’t it feel good to finally come to that decision? That’s awesome, Laura. ?  ?  That’s me high-fiving you and God (of course). LOL!

It’s so awesome to realize that God knows and loves your boys even more than you do, and He’s not going to leave you hanging. As you turn to Him for the answer, He will lead you to what’s needed at the time. It feels good to rest in that truth!

Anna
Laura
Laura

That’s exactly it, Anna!  No more spinning for me!  (I hope I remember not to purchase another ticket for that ride!)

Laura

Soaking in the Truth

Scripture to encourage you:

  • “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11, NIV).
  • He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good” (Romans 8:27-28, MSG).
  • “For you created my inmost being;  you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book  before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, God!  How vast is the sum of them. Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you” (Psalms 139: 13-18, NIV).

Music to inspire you:


Readings to come alongside of you:


Living Out the Truth

Ideas to try:

  • When you start to feel like you may be on “The Merry-Go-Round” with a certain decision you need to make, take a step back. Spend some quiet time praying and just telling God that you’re listening.
  • Pray: “Dear Father. You are a good, good Father and You are the answer to my every need.  You are the answer to every question, problem, and decision.  Help me Father to wait on You.  May Your word be the lamp unto my feet.  Whether I face big decisions or small ones today, help me trust the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  If the answer is to wait, help me wait with You.  If the answer is move, help me follow You.  If the answer is no, give me contentment with You.  If the answer isn’t that simple, help me find peace in knowing You first!  As I know you more, reveal Your perfect way for me and my family.  You are worthy of my trust, Father.  I place it in You alone.  In Jesus’ name! Amen.

{These suggestions are ideas from novice moms. Sometimes our life situations need more. In that case, seeking out professional help is the right call.}

About Michelle Warner

The truth about me is that I love spending time with people–whether it be with moms in MOPS, students in writing camps, friends in my supper club, or family on our patio. And if you combine people and words, I am definitely in my happy place. One of my most favorite moments is sitting around a table with the people I love sharing deep conversations about life. Inviting people into our home and pulling out my fancy dishes invigorates me, though tackling the hand-wash pile in my sink does quite the opposite. (Sorry, Hubby. I’ll get to those soon!) I’m learning to enjoy the people in my life without feeling the need to prove myself or always make them happy. God continues to teach me that when I find what I need in Him rather than the perfectly-cooked chicken or the perfectly-timed word, I have a security that can’t be shaken. And that’s a good thing since my hard-working husband and I have two very determined little girls who keep us on our toes!