Are You Backing Up or Moving Forward?
Welcome! Recently a friend shared a story with me about meeting new people. She backed up while the others in her group walked forward. This struck me as a metaphor for life in general.
When faced with something intimidating, do you step backward or forward? I’ll be honest. I usually back up and reflect before taking another step. I pray. I rarely make quick decisions. God formed me as a cautious, responsible woman, and I hate making mistakes.
Sometimes this slows me down. If I need to make a quick decision, say, taking an exit ramp off a highway even if my Google Map app says I’m not supposed to, sometimes I’ll jerk the wheel and take the ramp. Other times I’ll listen to Google, and find myself on the wrong road.
Turning around can be easy or difficult, depending on the highway. The same is true in life. Reversing a decision to sign a cell phone contract will cost you a few hundred bucks, but it’s not life-altering.
Joining a sports team, then deciding you hate it once you’re playing the game, has more serious consequences. You might want to quit, but your parents won’t let you. You feel pressured to support your teammates, so you endure the season. But you determine not to sign up next year.
Accepting a job you knew was a bad fit for you and your family, moving to a neighborhood you come to dislike, or beginning or ending relationships are much stickier situations.
If you have to pay a price for a bad decision, you can choose to back up, fueling depression by obsessing over regret, or you can step forward. You can pray. God will help you turn around, even if you have to pay a high price, literally or metaphorically, to get back on the right path. God is a God of second chances.
If you’re facing a decision today, pray for wisdom, then step forward in faith. Have a wonderful week. Blessings!