Daily Devotional for January 27, 2017
Tariq’s Decision
As Tariq walked home, he glanced at a poster advertising a movie that had just come out. It was the movie his friend Micah had invited him to. To celebrate Micah’s birthday, his parents had said he could have some friends over for pizza, and then they’d all go see the movie together.
The other boys were excited about it, but Tariq actually wished he hadn’t been asked to come. He could tell from what he’d read online that it wasn’t the kind of movie he should go see. In his heart a voice seemed to whisper, Just this once won’t hurt. Maybe the movie won’t be so bad, and even if it is, you can just ignore it and enjoy the popcorn. At the same time, he sensed another voice saying, Don’t go.
Tariq turned quickly when a car stopped beside him. It was his dad. “Hey, Tariq,” said Dad. “Want a ride?”
“Sure!” Tariq tossed his books into the backseat, then sighed deeply as he got in next to his dad.
“Is something wrong?” asked Dad. “You don’t look very happy.”
“Micah invited me to a pizza-and-movie party he’s having for his birthday,” said Tariq. “The party sounds like fun, but I know it’s a bad movie, so I guess I’ll have to tell him I’m not going.” He looked out the window to conceal unexpected tears that welled up in his eyes.
“There’s no way to make this easy for you,” said Dad, “but I’m glad you’re taking a stand on that kind of thing now, while you’re young.” Dad turned the car onto their street. “I’m reminded of something I heard long ago. Suppose you’re on a train and you learn that it’s moving toward a broken bridge. You don’t know how far away the bridge is. Should you get off as soon as possible or take a chance and stay on for a while?”
“Get off,” said Tariq. “You might reach the bridge quicker than you think.”
Dad nodded. “It’s better to make the move right away than to wish later on that you had,” he said. “It’s like that with many decisions in life. It’s important to make good choices immediately, before it’s too late.” – Phyllis I. Klomparens
How about you?
Do you choose to do the right thing when there’s a hard choice to make? Or do you figure it’s okay to follow your own desires “just this once”? Maybe you’re not always sure what the right thing to do even is. God promises to give wisdom to those who ask and trust Him for it. So ask God for wisdom to choose what’s right and for the courage to do what pleases Him.
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