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PROGRAM D-8167
In examining the topic of life at the crossroads—those times when we make crucial decisions—I believe Robert Frost captures this dilemma in his poem, “The Road Less Traveled,” which he ends by saying the following:
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
It is possible to make mistakes when we face life at the crossroads, and one of those is to overlook the importance of what we might call “small choices, minor decisions.” Those choices we consider small add up, and they impact our lives more than we would think.
For example, we choose each day whether we will spend quality time in God’s Word, in prayer, and in spiritual disciplines like memorizing scripture. If you make the wrong choice to skip that time one day, it may not have any serious long-term consequences. But if you keep making that small wrong choice day after day, it will soon add up to a choice with significant negative consequences in your life.
You may choose to allow a relationship to begin in your life, one which you know will not be good for you—but you think it’s no big deal and you can handle it. However, that small choice opens the door for that relationship to develop and it could eventually drag you down and cause you lots of heartache.
An old song says, “Little Things Mean a Lot,” and it’s also true that “Little Choices Mean a Lot.” Your everyday life is made up of little choices: Do I buy those shoes even though they are not in my budget? Do I skip church today because I’m a little tired? Do I take time to call a friend who is hurting? Do I share my faith with a co-worker when I have an opportunity? Do I eat that chocolate cheesecake which I don’t need? Do I make myself exercise today or not?
Those are examples of the little crossroads we face each day and, while one day of poor choices may not take us down the wrong road, repeated days of poor everyday choices will affect our health, our finances, our spiritual growth—you name it. Making good decisions at these daily crossroads of life requires discipline.
In Proverbs 5, we see the lament of a person who refused discipline:
At the end of your life you will groan, when your flesh and body are spent. You will say, “How I hated discipline! How my heart spurned correction! And I was soon in serious trouble. . .” (Proverbs 5:11-12,14)
Like Frost’s poem, the person who refuses discipline will be “telling this with a sigh” because those poor everyday choices can truly lead to utter ruin—physically, emotionally, and spiritually. So, as you face your everyday choices today, remember that how you choose will make all the difference.