To Accept Is To Deny

Last week we prayed for Associate Pastors as they gain experience. Yesterday we prayed over Senior Pastors and the spirit of discernment. In that similar vein of thought, I was considering decision-making.

As in finances, $20 spent on going out with friends is $20 less you have for gas, when you gauge drops below 1/4 in a couple days; so to, saying yes to one thing equates to denial of another.

If only all decisions could be broken down, free of external factors, opinions and influences that create complexity. Yet dealing with complexity is how you gain experience and learning to do it well is you become one that others look to as competent. Competency with a long track record turns to wisdom. Everything about creation, the most complex forms and circumstances can be traced back to a single decision, in which one had received an affirmative response and the other, an automatic decline.

Whilst the decline can be hard to watch and resisting the temptation to change one's mind is a struggle at best, it's crucial that right decisions are made with the right people involved, with accurate information and sufficient resources to follow through. If any of those four components are off; a lesson will be learned, but probably not without consequences.

On this #associatePastorTuesday, pray for discernment in the decisions they face; to say Yes with confidence, to say No with conviction. Pray for wisdom regarding the decision-making process; may the right people be involved, may the strategy be comprehensive; the information accurate; and the resources in place. Pray for those times, when one of these elements are missing...may they have guidance to know if that means to wait entirely or to have faith in making the best decision available at the time. Pray for the people and ministries affected by those decisions. 50% will have something negative to say about the outcome...may God help you navigate potential fall-outs, while trusting God will carry you as you follow-through.

-PNC

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