Overcome Your Overwhelm – Indecision

I prefer to avoid failure. When given a choice between certainty and uncertainty, my natural tendency is to move toward certainty. But I have found that waiting until everything is clear and all the details are in order will often leave me on the sidelines. Instead of participating in the process, I am watching life move by while finding myself disappointed and frustrated.

This disappointment typically gives way to thoughts of defeat and overwhelm. What did I do wrong? If only I had just stepped up. Why can’t I figure this thing out? What could my life have been? I guess it is time to start over. But how will I know what to do now? You get the idea.

Today, we are going to look at Overwhelm Trigger #6: Indecision – I need all the information first. If you know me well, you know that one of my favorite Biblical characters is Joshua. I love Joshua because he both is relatable and inspirational. He makes mistakes, is full of fear, and struggles with his position. Yet, at the same time, Joshua loves God, walks in courage, and leads others well. In my new book Finding Simplicity, I write about how Joshua’s example helped me overcome indecision.

Several years ago, my friend Autumn asked me to speak at a women’s conference she led. Each year, she would prayerfully choose a theme verse, and each year the theme appeared to be anointed by God. This year was no exception. There was only one problem. When I heard the selected topic, I felt unqualified to teach about it. Even though I would not have admitted it at the time, I wasn’t even sure I believed it applied to my life. I knew it had to be true, because it was part of the Bible, but, in practice, it seemed far from reality.

What verse so unsettled me? Joshua 1:3, “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.”

…The book of Joshua begins at a time of grief and loss. Moses, the great leader of the nation, was dead. As Joshua was processing this painful loss, God spoke to him. “Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel.”

Joshua is in a particularly challenging place. Not only is he grieving the death of his mentor and friend; he also now has the enormous responsibility of leading the entire nation of Israel. I can only imagine how overwhelming and intimidating his calling is.

If you are unfamiliar with the history of the Israelites, they were known for being difficult, complaining, and rebellious. As Joshua steps into leadership, he finds himself in a place he has stood before, and, the last time he was here, things didn’t turn out well.

Forty years prior, Joshua had been sent with eleven other Israelite leaders to scope out the region across the Jordan— the land God had promised to give to His people. Joshua and another faithful man, Caleb, surveyed the property and saw its goodness. They were ready to lead the Israelites to conquer and to claim God’s promises. Unfortunately, the other ten men viewed things quite differently. Where Joshua and Caleb saw God’s promises, these men saw the opportunity for failure and defeat.

Instead of heeding Joshua and Caleb, the people scorned their advice and rebelled against God. They refused to conquer the land, as they had been commanded. This disobedience caused God to extend Israel’s wilderness wandering for an additional forty years.

Now that we have the context, let’s look at that verse again. “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.” God’s instruction to Joshua was basic—he simply needed to take a step forward. Every place where Joshua’s foot touched the ground would be the land God’s people would inherit.

As I pondered these verses, a phrase repeatedly played in my head: If you want to claim God’s promises, you have to take a step.

While we should never move forward without first praying for God’s direction, once we have received it, we are responsible to act on it. Many times, Christians use prayer as an excuse to stay comfortable, but our immobility does not honor God when He has already revealed what we need to do. We may think we are waiting on God, but, more often, He is waiting on us. If we truly believe His promises, we will take steps toward living them fully.

During my first season of studying Joshua, I knew God had placed gifts in my hands that He wanted to use for ministry, but I was failing to develop those gifts. I soon realized I couldn’t just sit back and wait for everything to happen on its own. To claim God’s calling and His promises, I needed to start acting on what I knew.

Now, in that season, and many times between – I fight indecision. I still want all the answers. But I know I will never find them in constant questioning and over-thinking. Usually, the answers lie on the other side of action.

This is where faith comes in.

“Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1 NIV)

Faith is not faith until you have walked in the dark, stepped into the unknown, risked failure, or put your reputation on the line. Faith stands in the face of indecision and confusion and chooses action. It takes the risk. And most importantly, it trusts God.

What area are you stuck? Don’t stand there waiting for all the answers or the perfect moment. Take a step. Walk boldly. Choose faith.