How to make Wise Choices

(1 Timothy 5:23 – How to make wise choices)

Life is about making choices. Everything in life is a choice, from deciding to get out of bed in the morning, what to have for breakfast, what to wear for the day, even whether to go to work or not. Everything is a choice.

Our choices define who we are and what we do. But how do you learn how to make wise choices?

It is clear from the state of the world today that many, many bad choices have been made. Knowing this, it becomes even more important to learn how to make wise choices.

The effect of how to make wise choices

In this verse today, we see Paul recommending a path for Timothy to take.

No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments. (1 Timothy 5:23

Apparently Timothy suffered from stomach complaints and intestinal ailments. Paul suggested that he take a little wine to settle these ailments.

Was this good advice or not? Let’s pretend for a moment that Paul did not know Timothy as well as he obviously did.

There is nothing inherently wrong with Paul’s suggestion. To take a little wine is neither a good or a bad thing in itself. But to do so might depend on other factors.

What if Timothy had a problem with alcohol? What if he was or had been an alcoholic? Or what if there was a pattern of alcoholism in Timothy’s immediate family?

Or imagine if he was seen drinking alcohol or had the smell of alcohol on his breath when he was preaching the gospel. Would that show him and the gospel up in a bad light?

Under these conditions it might be better if he did NOT take a little wine as it may lead to worse conditions.

So, a situational analysis might be warranted before Timothy made a decision to blindly follow the words of Paul.

Once Timothy had weighed up his situation, then an appropriate path forward could be determined. This is how to make wise choices, by considering all of the available information before committing to a course of action. And the effect of making a wise choice will lead to a better outcome.

Why don’t people make wise choices?

I have already stated that much of this world is in trouble because bad choices were made. This is the case at both a personal and a community level. When bad choices are made the effect of those choices will have a negative impact on everyone affected by those choices.

Sin is usually the end point of a bad choice. So, righteousness is the obvious consequence of a wise choice. When we do evil it leads to evil consequences, but when we do good it leads to more good.

It’s a simple equation but too often it is not followed. And it isn’t as though in most situations we don’t know the difference between what is a wise choice and what is an evil choice. Think about this for a moment.

• The alcoholic who thinks just one drink won’t hurt.
• The gambler who thinks one quick punt will be OK and then loses the whole housekeeping money
• The drug addict who chooses another hit after battling to kick the habit
• The person addicted to porn who continues to seek out pornography after swearing off of it
• The politician who takes a bribe to feather his own nest
• The person who sneaks out to have an affair and by so doing destroys a marriage and trust
• And the list goes on…

All of these people know and understand the consequences of their bad choices, but they do them anyway. They think they won’t succumb or get caught out, and when they are caught they admit they knew it was wrong.

The bottom line is that they make bad choices because they do not follow the Lord or the ways of God, but they follow the passions, lusts, and desires of the flesh. This is what the scripture tells us:

13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted with evil and he himself tempts no one; 14 but each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin; and sin when it is full-grown brings forth death. (James 1:13-15)

People are tempted by the desires of the flesh and lured into sinful ways. They have not learned how to make wise choices but are led astray by what their body or mind wants. And so they commit sin because they don’t know how to make wise choices.

How to make wise choices

Surely there is a better way? There must be a way to overcome these passions, lusts, and desires of the flesh?

The Lord has provided us with the means to have victory over the flesh. He has given us the ability to know how to make wise choices, and also has given us the means.

The mechanism for overcoming the passions, lusts, and desires of the flesh is by learning how to walk in the Spirit.

There are some precursors that are necessary, such as faith, being baptised, receiving freedom from sin and the law, and receiving the Holy Spirit. These are necessary if you are to have the victory over the flesh, and I have written about these many times in my blog. If you want to know more about these things, including why they are necessary and how they work, I recommend you grab a copy of my free eBook titled “The Six Foundation Teachings of Jesus Christ. Just hit the link and you can get a copy for free.

What we want to do is to change our thinking when the passions of the flesh rise up in us or we are put in a situation where a good and a bad choice are before us. This is what walking in the Spirit is all about. The Holy Spirit gives us the strength to focus our minds on something else and to take the evil thought or passion captive, and crush it before it leads to sin.

There are many ways to do this, the best of which is to pray, and especially to pray with the Spirit by speaking in tongues. The gift of tongues is offered to everyone who receives the Holy Spirit. If you don’t have this gift yet, then again, grab the free eBook at the link above and it will help you through the process.

There are other ways also that you can walk in the Spirit, Some of these were discussed by Paul in his letter to the Philippians.

6 Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (Philippians 4:6-8)

I have highlighted the key phrase in these verses. Learning how to make wise choices is all about what you think about.

What do you set your mind on? Do you let it run wild when it is all fired up by the passions lusts and desires of you body? Or, do you instead try to focus on good things and consider the ramifications of what you potential actions might lead to?

Learn how to make wise choices and find life. The wisest choice of all is to seek Jesus because it is through Him that we find life and also gain the victory over the flesh. And when we follow His words and His ways, we can’t help but make wise choices.

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