If you\u2019ve ever gone hiking in a state or national park, you\u2019ve seen that every so often there are forks in the path. Typically at the fork, there will be a simple map showing what will happen if you go left versus right.\u00a0 And then you make a choice.\u00a0 Sometimes your choice will depend on the distance you want to hike that day.\u00a0 At other times, you may want to see a certain vista.\u00a0 But you have to make a choice.\u00a0 Straight is not an option.<\/p>\n
Life is like that. And unfortunately, sometimes we choose the wrong path.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think anyone intentionally chooses the wrong path.\u00a0 No one enters a marriage with the intention of ultimately getting divorced.\u00a0 On your wedding day, you are the most hopeful and excited person on earth.\u00a0 You hope that your spouse is going to be kind and loyal to you until the day you die.\u00a0 But life doesn\u2019t always work out that way. \u00a0Likewise, no one takes a job thinking that eventually they will get fired or laid off.\u00a0 They hope that the job will be one in which they can make a contribution and grow their skills.\u00a0 But sometimes employers and employees aren\u2019t a good fit, and jobs end.<\/p>\n
The bad choice is our first fork in the road. But the first fork isn\u2019t what defines us.\u00a0 It is the second fork that matters.\u00a0 Once we\u2019ve made the bad choice and have lived with it for a little while, then we encounter the second fork.\u00a0 Once again we have two paths to follow: \u00a0Do we take the path of least resistance and carry on living with our bad choice?\u00a0 Or are we brave?\u00a0 Do we try to learn from our mistakes and chose a better path for our lives?<\/p>\n
I know a lot of people who decide to live with their bad choices. They stay in unhappy marriages because they don\u2019t want to endure the shame of divorce.\u00a0 They pursue unfulfilling careers because they think it will provide them with financial security.\u00a0 They remain addicted, depressed or angry rather than seek the help they need to change their behaviors.<\/p>\n
God does not call us to live with our bad choices. He calls us to leave behind what isn’t working in our lives.\u00a0 If we simply stay on the bad path, we squander the life that God has given us.<\/p>\n
We all know people who are stuck in their bad choices. They have a way out, but they can\u2019t seem to take it.\u00a0 They would rather follow the path of least resistance.\u00a0 Are you that person?\u00a0 If so, I am sympathetic.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been stuck at times in my life too.\u00a0 I stayed in a marriage longer than I should have.\u00a0 I followed a career path that didn\u2019t make me happy.\u00a0 But at a certain point, I learned that it was important for me to take that second fork in the road.\u00a0 I had to be brave, and go in a new and better direction.<\/p>\n
Now the first path is not wasted time, as long as you learn from it<\/em> and move on<\/em>.\u00a0 None of our life experiences, even the worst ones, need to be wasted time.\u00a0 They are only without purpose if we chose to respond in the wrong way to them.\u00a0 A bad experience is a waste of time if I respond by becoming a bitter person.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t a waste, if I respond by becoming more compassionate toward others in the same predicament.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t a waste, if I develop a sense of humility from the experience and realize that I am nothing without God\u2019s presence in my life.<\/p>\n Today, think about the choices that you\u2019ve made in your own life. Are you facing that second fork in the road?\u00a0 Make sure that you don\u2019t live with your bad choices.\u00a0 Instead use them to propel you the next, better step in your life journey.\u00a0 Remember that you owe it to yourself, and to God, to live your best life possible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" If you\u2019ve ever gone hiking in a state or national park, you\u2019ve seen that every so often there are forks in the path. Typically at the fork, there will be a simple map showing what will happen if you go left versus right.\u00a0 And then you make a choice.\u00a0 Sometimes your choice will depend on…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":593,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-233","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n