Recently my beloved flip phone broke into two pieces. I love that phone, and even though I got smiles and laughter when using it, I didn’t plan on getting rid of it. Well, it left me with no choice; it broke in half. Consequently, as much as I didn’t want to purchase a smartphone, I made up my mind. I broke down and bought an iPhone! I see more smiles! Unfortunately, I couldn’t transfer data from my old cell phone to the new one at the time. I lost all the contacts, but I could retrieve some from my iPad and an old flip cell phone before my last one. Thank God I held on to the phone and cord.

As I searched the phone for contacts, I came across a text my daughter sent me about nine years ago- something she saw on Facebook. The statement said, ” I’ve made up my mind.” She began to say how powerful this statement is. It is powerful. Why? Because when we say we made up our mind, it means we made a choice.

Along with the choice has to be a commitment. What does commitment do? It establishes priorities, rids some unwanted clutter in our life, and, most importantly, allows us to proceed forward in life. Also, I like something else said in the text, “Sitting on the fence may keep your options open, but it also makes you a sitting duck.” Wow! How many times are we caught between deciding and not making a stand about situations and people in our life? Especially with those individuals, you have a relationship. Yes, sometimes it is easy to do nothing, but consequently, you earn nothing in reality. No choice, no peace of mind is the way I see it.

Now, think about some situations in your life where you were or are sitting on the fence of indecision. What helped or will help you to make a commitment or decision? Did you or will you do it alone or with the help of someone else? What emotion did you or may you feel after making up your mind to make a change? What was or is the most challenging part of making the decision? Any regrets or just sighs of relief? I ask these questions because I know how hard it is to make various decisions in relationships.

Likewise, it can be challenging to say, “I made up my mind.” It often means telling your heart to be quiet. When our heart speaks to us about specific situations or more, especially individuals we love or feel, we want to be a part of our lives; our mind may say no-no, our heart says yes-yes.

Next, if you are having difficulty making up your mind to do or change something in your life, take the time to sit and list the advantages and disadvantages of doing or not doing. If the bad outweighs the good, is that not a sign? Think about it and start writing so you can confidently say, “I made up my mind!” But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:3. I’ll be back next week with a new post, “Not a Victim, but a Victor!”

Be encouraged, and God bless!

Sis. Jackie