Decide. What does that mean?
When we trace the roots of the word to Latin, it literally means to “Cut Off”. From that perspective, to decide means to eliminate possibility. It means to choose one option at the cost of all other options (see more here – Excellence or Mediocrity).
Characteristics of choice –
Sometimes decisions are excruciatingly painful because there are no good options.
Sometimes the right choice is not the most enjoyable. Deciding because of honor or integrity instead of self benefit are some examples.
Sometimes there are so many options that it’s difficult to narrow it down. I run into this when I’m scrolling Netflix to find something to watch. There are too many good options. This is called Paradox of Choice. (more info). Too many options lead to the inability to make a decision.
Decisiveness is a good quality to have most of the time. Many decisions require a level of thoughtfulness that they don’t always get though. When we decide, we need to understand that there will be a span of time where that choice will be all work and no play. Michael Hyatt calls it the Messy Middle. It’s the time where all the work is.
A good decision that will yield good fruit is one where the pursuit of all other choices are abandon and all energy is put toward the option you’ve chosen. Much like a covenant. When we choose a spouse, we should abandon all other options. When we choose to follow Christ, we abandon all other options.
