By Sarah Mullens – CFFM Office Manager
The most honest question I was ever asked about where I was going with my relationship with God was given to me in a basketball analogy.
The question was, “If I had to choose between waiting to get seats behind the bench and meet Ben Wallace (my favorite NBA player of all time) or taking seats for the whole season up in the nosebleed section, what would I pick?”
Photo by Keith Allison
This question was asked at a pivotal time in my life. I was making bad choices. I was a single mom working two jobs. I went through the motions of going to church.
There wasn’t a lot about God I trusted at that moment except that He was always faithful when I gave with a heart of love.
Where you are today in your relationship with God, Jesus, family, finances and every other aspect of your life is directly related to the choices and decisions you have made up until this point.
“This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life, so that you and your children may live.” Deuteronomy 30:19 (NIV)
What Will You Choose?
God tells us—CHOOSE LIFE! It’s like a test with a cheat sheet! A plan without God’s presence is a problem.
I tell my kids, “You can choose your actions, but you can’t choose the consequences of those actions.” You can’t predict the outcome.
Sometimes you get away with something – that is called God’s grace and mercy. But sometimes what happens is way worse than you think.
Doing what is convenient or the popular “next step” rarely ends the way we plan. We need to have a standard. We need to know what we believe and why we believe it.
Compromising on what we believe will always end in loss or hurt in some way. Making good decisions requires having a standard that we can hold on to in spite of our emotions. The choices we make today will affect us for years.
The question was, “Would I wait to sit behind the bench behind Ben Wallace or take nosebleed seats?” Of course, I would wait.
If I would wait for better seats at a basketball game, then maybe I should be willing to wait on God.
But, For How Long?
Then the biggest question I have is, “How long is the wait?” I can wait pretty easily when I know how long I have to wait but when the wait time is unknown, am I still willing? I started to realize how often I took the “nosebleed seats,” that instant gratification, instead of waiting for what would be better for me.
Principles in the Bible work whether you believe God or not. God is not a respecter of persons (Romans 2:11). His laws work for everyone who follows them.
Success in any area of life requires diligence (Proverbs 22:29). Diligence is being persistent, hardworking and doing the best we can.
Practice doesn’t make perfect—practice makes permanent.
“The lips of the righteous nourish many, but fools die for lack of sense.” Proverbs 10:21 (NIV)
“The tongue has the power of life and death…” Proverbs 18:21 (NIV)
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17 (NIV)
Watch Your Mouth!
What we speak to others and to ourselves matters. Our actions and speech are directly related to what we think about and who we surround ourselves with.
Our words can change the atmosphere the room. They can change a person’s whole life.
I remember a manager telling me, as I took my first HR position, “You are either going to be the type of person that people come to for advice or the type of person that people go to other people to get advice on how to deal with. How successful you are in this job (and life and in relationships with people) will be determined on which person you are.”
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21 (NIV)
Ultimately, I am the only one who can choose the paths I take. Today, I am more willing to “wait for the seats behind the bench.”
For example, when I financially support godly causes, I eagerly wait for God to bless every area of my life.
The giving and the waiting are both a heart thing. A selfish heart has a closed hand.
I want to be able to speak about Jesus to everyone I meet. My choices, words, and money all “speak” in my daily life —I want them to say what Jesus says.
Sarah started as the finance secretary for CFFM in 2014. In 2018, she added the role of general manager to those responsibilities where she continues to sit at the crossroads of much of our ministry communications. Sarah and her husband Saukar have three children – MaKayla, Amiri, and Alijah, along with their grandson, Carter.