If I would have been taught about the importance of the choices and decisions that we make at a earlier age than I did then maybe things would have been a little different than they were for me. It wasn’t that I was not taught to make good choices and decisions, but I was not taught to stand up for the right ones. I was not taught to do what I knew was right no matter what other people may say or think about me. And because of that I found myself often doing things that I knew were not good for me. Because I wanted to be liked and accepted by others I would do things that I knew I shouldn’t do just to try to fit in. And every time that I did that I would feel a little worse about myself. I ended up spending many years of my life allowing the opinions and views of others to dictate my choices and decisions, in which, did not turn out well for me at all. I lost so much of my value and worth that I lost myself. I lost sight of what was important to me and what I wanted from life. And I suffered many years because of the the choices and decisions that I made.

When we do not make the choices and decisions that we know we should we are only hurting ourselves. If we choose to make a choice based on what someone else will think we neglect ourselves and can possibly cause future trouble for ourselves. Sure that person or persons will like us or think that we are cool, but how are we making ourselves feel about ourselves by those choices? What kind of consequences could we possibly face from those choices? What kind of impact will those choices have on our future? Because one thing is for sure, our choices will not effect anyone else but ourselves. We are the one’s that have to deal with the outcome of our choices and decisions. Those people that we tried to impress with our choices will go on with life being happy, peaceful, and content, but will we? There are people that have not been able to live with themselves because of choices that they made trying to impress someone else so they became drug addicts or committed suicide. That is how important our choices and decisions are to our quality of life.

Once I started studying my bible and discovering truth I was able to gain a deeper understanding of the importance to make the right choices and decisions. I also learned something that helped to set me free on what others thought about me. Just because something is right or good for one person does not mean that it is right or benefical for the next person. We each have different paths, different values, different desires, different needs, are at different stages in our lives, and are on different levels of our spirituality. Just because I feel like it is okay to eat pork does not mean that someone else thinks that it is okay. Just because I can not go to church for two months and not feel bad about it does not mean that someone else wouldn’t feel bad about it. Just because I choose to not go out and hang out late at night does not mean that it is wrong for someone else to do it. And just because someone else eats a lot of junk food does not mean that I have to as well.

The scripture about how each of us are responsible for our own conduct and the one that says we have been given the gift of free choice also hit my spirit in a powerful way. We can not blame others for the choices that we make and the affect that they have on us and our lives. No one makes us do anything. We may allow others to influence us to make certain choices and decisions, but they do not make us make them. We have the right to do as we wish. And no one else will be held accountable for our choices so we must choose to make the best choices and decisions that we can.

Although I have made many choices that I now wish I would have done differently I have learned some very valuable lessons from them. I have learned what not to do in many situations. I have learned that the guilt, regret, and shame that I have when I willingly make the wrong choices is not worth it. I would rather have everyone against me than to have to live with that. I would rather be at peace with myself, knowing that I am making the best choices that I know to make, than to be accepted by someone else. I would rather not be understood by someone else than to not be happy with myself. And if I want what is best for me and my life then I have to make the choices and decisions that the Holy Spirit is guiding me to make instead of what my human nature wants. There is no more satisfaction than knowing that you are making the best of yourself and your life because you are making right choices and decisions by following the Holy Spirit’s guidance instead of the world’s.

Not everyone is going to agree with you. Not everyone is going to like you. Not everyone is going to approve of you no matter how hard you try. So give up on pleasing other’s and focus on pleasing God and your Spirit by making the best choices and decisions that you can. Sometimes we will find that it was not the right choice but we will know that we made the best one that we could at the time. Sometimes we have to make the wrong ones so that we can learn a valuable lesson for the future so don’t beat yourself up if it turns out that way. As long as we do the best that we can at the time, with the information and knowledge that we have, that is all that we can do.