Blog
One of my greatest weaknesses is saying “no”. When someone asks for my help, I immediately want to respond with “yes”! I want people to be happy. I want them to be pleased that I will help. I want to show them I’m capable and can do it…among a gazillion other things I have said “yes” to.
But when I say yes to all these things, I’m actually saying no to something.
Maybe it’s time with my family I’m sacrificing. It could be time spent away from a project that needs to get done. I might be saying yes to lots of people, but then it short changes the ones that I’m already supposed to be helping.
Anybody?
I know I’m not alone.
So, throughout the past few years, I’ve started learning how to say yes to the best things and no to the things that are less important or can be done without me. Lysa Terkheurst has a book out called “The Best Yes”.
“The decisions you make today matter. Every decision points your life in the direction you are about to travel. No decision is an isolated choice. It’s a chain of events. If you choose wisely, your future will reflect that. But if you don’t choose wisely, the decisions you make now will take you to places you don’t want to be later.”
If you’re like me, you’ve probably made some bad decisions that you’ve had to live with. Promises that ended up being broken, choosing something on a whim instead of listening to sound advice, or acting like it’s no big deal when it was.
A yes is your word, a commitment, a promise, a vow. And it’s important to the one you are saying yes to, as well as God.
“And Moses spake unto the heads of the tribes concerning the children of Israel, saying, This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded. If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.” (Numbers 30:1-2)
A man’s word was like a contract, binding him to the commitment or “yes” he was giving. Men were held accountable for their vows. But as the chapter continues, we see women were also held to this standard. A father of the woman, or if she was married, her husband, could disallow or overrule her decision if they overheard it and realized it was foolish.
God is serious about vows. Promises are part of who He is. He has made promises to us and He keeps them. If we are to be Christ-like, we too have to fulfill our commitments, even if they were made foolishly.
Instead of adding more things to your plate, consider what you’ve already said yes to. Are you fulfilling your commitment? To be a wife, a mother, a husband, a teacher, a nurse, a doctor, a reporter, a writer, a friend…
“Remember, the decisions you make determine the schedule you keep. The schedule you keep determines the life you live. And how you live your life determines how you spend your soul.” – Lysa Terkheurst.
How are you spending your soul?
Copyright © 2021 Lifeword.org. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from Lifeword.org