What if the grass is greener on the other side?  What if it’s not?  What if it’s artificial turf and you get fooled?  Or, what if it’s worse than where you are?  Does it really matter if it is God’s will for you to be there?

Choice is almost an epidemic in American culture.  I recently stood in the aisle at the grocery store with 36+ choices of salad dressing; overwhelmed, I selected none of them. The online selection almost doubled my options, and I still did not purchase one because I discovered there was not one that was perfectly made for my dietary needs.  I would need to make my own!  The question was not about whether to buy salad dressing or not.  I wanted salad dressing.  It was not even a question of being a difficult or picky eater.  The real question was whether the salad dressing was BEST and RIGHT for ME.  BEST and RIGHT for me is going to look different than for my neighbor, a friend across town,  or the ladies in my Bible Study group because my needs are different than theirs.  The same is true about where God leads us and what He asks us to do.

God is interested in growing you and molding you.  He is refining you to be more like Him.  He may allow you to step into areas of difficulty and challenge, a vastly different culture or position, or a season of calm and rest to refine you and mold you into His image.  We are created in His image and made to worship Him.  The more we dig into the Bible, and the more we meditate and seek the Lord in understanding His Word, the more we become what He designed us to be and the more we understand that He knows what we need.  So, don’t think that a choice you have to make is about finding the grass is greener on the other side.  Rather, enter into choices asking, “Lord, what is BEST for me and/or my family right now in light of Your plan?”  If the Lord calls you to the desert, He will make a way; all you need to do is stay in His Word!  No matter where you go, if the Lord leads you, it is His Will and there is no better place to be than in the middle of the Will of God!

In Matthew 14:22-33 Peter affectionately goes out on the water toward Jesus when he hears His voice, but very quickly he begins to sink.  Jesus immediately identifies that Peter was doubtful.  He exhorts us to take courage and trust Him.  Whether the choice you have to make is about dietary issues, a job change, relationships, or any other topic, the answer is always what God says is BEST and RIGHT for you right now!  It’s about stepping out onto the water with excitement to follow the way the Lord is leading, without questioning the details. It’s about letting go of the doubt that causes you to sink.

You can learn to be more courageous and less doubtful by spending time reading your Bible daily, and choosing to be quiet before Him so you can hear His Spirit guide you and teach you.  Remember, God cares about your heart and doubt has no business there!  Trust Him to lead you to what is BEST and RIGHT for you so that you are your BEST for Him!

It is my prayer that you step out in courage and walk toward your Savior, without doubt, and if you do doubt, that you get up and walk again.  

Joyfully Healing from the Inside Out,