Living With Purpose

Decidophobia is the fear of making decisions and describes people who lack courage or the will to sort through the opposing sides in disagreements. Lack of trust and worry has also been blamed for this problem. Trust issues keep us from living with confidence and puts us at risk for the “second-guess syndrome”. People who suffer from decidophobia would rather leave the deciding of what is the truth to some authority they can trust. This authority might be a parent, spouse, minister, or professor. Many times the over-riding factor that pushes you into making a decision is the recommendations of people you know. Using your common sense, you reason that if somebody else had good results, then you will too! Emails, radio ads, billboards, and messages on social media pages carry with them a certain degree of trust, but it’s a small percentage of what we really believe and trust in. We assign trust levels to everything and everyone that affects us.

While attending military training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, I had to perform a foot rappel drill off a sheer cliff (a 150 foot wall). That doesn’t sound very high, but for someone who doesn’t like heights, it was a challenge. I climbed the wall on the other side and watched my battle buddies, one-by-one take their turn at rappelling down. When it was my turn the drill sergeant yelled, “Lean back and trust the rope, trust the rope!” I was hesitant, but had to do it.

Sometimes you just have to step off into something with faith. Many people say they trust God and have faith, but they fail to show it in their actions. In Isaiah 12:2 it says, “God indeed is my salvation. I am confident and unafraid. For the Lord is my strength and my might.” You can’t hesitate and take baby-steps off a cliff. You have to trust your equipment and use technique. Similarly, we must trust God and use our talents for Him. To rappel successfully you have to fall back and know the rope is going to catch you. You don’t go anywhere and you’re stuck until you lean into the rope and push off from the wall with your feet. It’s the same with God. We’re stuck and never improve our state in life until we act on our trust for God. When we choose to lean into Him, the adventure begins!

If there’s one enemy of trust it has to be fear or the worry that something detrimental is going to happen. Fear and worry can paralyze a person emotionally and spiritually. Because we have the ability to think, we also have the ability to let worry creep inside our minds. Unbelievers have reason to fear and even some Christians are plagued with occasional seasons of discouragement and doubt. You can trust God’s promise of salvation. You can believe in God’s love and His protection. Don’t let yourself become upset by the countless troubles of everyday life.

Jesus said, “Don’t let your heart be troubled. You’ve put your trust in God; put your trust in me also” (John 14:1). God is greater than any problem you’re facing. You can trust Him by placing everything into His hands with prayer. Be secure and know that God is in control of your circumstances. Don’t look anxiously into the future, but concentrate on what clearly is required of you today. Each day holds the possibility of new opportunities. Wake up every morning and claim the new thing God is doing. Isaiah 43:6 says, “I will do a new thing. It will begin happening now. Will you not know about it? I will even make a road in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.”

The best thing is to trust God. The best place for your worries is to give them to Him. In fact, God specializes in troubles, fears, worries, doubts, sorrows, heartbreaks, and weaknesses. He can handle all of them for you. Seek His protection, cry out to Him in prayer, and leave all these things with Him. He wants to build your faith and trust in Him. He’s like a rock that can’t be moved. We can trust God when He says He loves us and will help us.

As far as our loved ones and friends are concerned; it’s normal for us to be concerned about them and the hardships they face. And it’s understandable that all of us think about the future of our relationships. During these times we need to consider the words of Psalm 62:8: “Trust in Him at all times. Pour out your heart before Him. God is a safe place for us.” Trust that God is bigger than your problems and challenges. Pray for the people you love. Even give your enemies over to God and trust Him to deal with them in His way.

Is there something you’ve wanted to do but have been too afraid to try? Fling yourself on God, lean into Him with a trusting heart, and do it! If your faith starts to waver and Satan says you can’t, then dig down and trust God all the more and live courageously knowing God will never leave you behind!

• This weekly column is written by Matt Dobson. He’s the author of the newly released book: “Soldiers of God: A Bible Study guide for Spiritual Warfare”. Matt can be reached by email: rmdobson@liberty.edu. He welcomes your thoughts concerning faith, belief, and Christian living.