Choose Your Own Adventure

Choose Your Own Adventure, Choose Your Own Life

Do you remember reading those “chose your own adventure” books? They are stories that allow the reader to decide at certain key points in the book which direction the story may turn. It’s like coming to a fork in the road, except you can read the story again and make different choices to affect the outcome. In reading the books, you get a chance to have a “do over” and get a new ending. In real life, we rarely get to have a “do over”, but we can choose to look for a new path that leads from the place we are today.

How in the World Did I End Up Like This?

At times, I have looked at my life and wondered “how did things end up this way?” Then I start to dwell on the “if only I would have’s” and the “what if I would have’s” kind of thoughts. I look back on the choices I made both big and small and “should” all over myself.

               What if I chose a different major in college?

               What if I did not home school my kids?

               If only I didn’t eat that donut!

               Why didn’t I keep my thoughts to myself?

 I think we all take seriously our major life direction choices such as where to live, whom to marry, what job to pursue. When these big things come up, we usually take the time to seriously consider our options and potential consequences. Yet, little do we realize at the time how even our small daily choices such as what to eat, what to speak, what  to do, what to buy, etc. all adds up and leads us down a path littered with bad decisions. Often the accumulations of those small choices limit us when the larger choices come up.

Here is an example: What kind of job should I have? That path depended on how well I studied in school, what courses I took in college, what internships or volunteer experiences gave me the skills I need, what connections have I made to help me in my job search, how well my interviewing skills are, how much time did I goof off in school, was I trying to get by or did I really try, etc. All of those previous steps and more ultimately affect my current job situation.

Is There a Remote Control for That?

Our inaction as a result of choices can also have serious consequences. Not exercising and being a couch potato leads to a body that is out of shape. Not talking to people we know and not pursuing friendships can lead to loneliness. Not doing the laundry, not mopping the floors, not cleaning out the refrigerator will lead to a dirty, sloppy house. You get the point. Sometimes it’s laziness that keeps us from taking action, other times it may be depression or anxiety over making the wrong choice. Whatever the reason, there is a consequence to inaction as well as to action.

Okay, Now I Feel Guilty

I got the point. My actions and decisions or lack of those have led me to the life I have today. Of course, not everything is in our control; things happen such as accidents, illnesses, choices of others, the economy, etc. to affect the course of our lives. Guilt, shame, and blame never serve as proper motivating factors in life. Actually, they add crippling effects heaped onto the pile of problems we already have.

Since our past choices helped to lead us to our current situation, it only makes sense that our current and future choices can help to lead us to a better place. I am reminded of the Roman Centurion in Luke chapter 7.  We think the story is about his faith because Jesus comments on how He has not seen such faith in Israel but there is more. It’s also about the choices that the Centurion makes. Yes, he has to have the faith to believe in the healing by command, yet he also must decide to approach and ask a favor of Jesus (Romans and Jews don’t hang out together), and hope that in return he would be granted his request.

A Step in the Right Direction

Many times I don’t have the faith or the conviction to take action. How about you? I think we all know what we should do, this isn't really a new thought for most of us. If we are stuck in a place where we don’t like our circumstances, we need to look back at the choices we made which contributed to where we are today. We then need to go over choices we can make to get moving into another direction.  This is the hard part. We need to do something-take a step in the right direction-a baby step maybe – make a good choice.  Examples include: drop that donut and eat a piece of fruit, get the kitchen counter cleaned, call that friend you have been thinking about, make that doctor appointment you have been putting off, ask an associate to practice interviewing with you, take a ten minute walk, say I’m sorry, just do one thing the right way to start the process.

Who knows, it could be the beginning of a miracle? It will certainly be an adventure with a different ending.