#58 The Positive Power of One - Decision (05/01/03)

The Message

By Dr. Robert A. Schuller

I am continuing in the series my father and I have been sharing on the Positive Power of ONE. Today I am sharing on the Positive Power of One DECISION! Life is basically a series of decisions. All we do is make decisions. When the alarm went off this morning you made the decision to either get up or to turn the alarm off. That was a decision you made. You all made the right decision to get up ... and to come here this morning! If you had made the wrong decision, you would probably still be in bed.

All day ... every day ... we make basic decisions ... to get up ... to shower ... to go to work or not go to work ... to go to school or to play hooky ... to play golf or whatever we do. These are all decisions we make throughout our life. God has given us the free will to make decisions.

The kind of decisions I'm talking about this morning are not the decisions we make constantly throughout the day. No, I'm talking about the positive power of that one decision that changes the course of your life. The kind of decisions like ... am I going to college? ... which college?... am I going to marry this person I have been dating and I think I'm in love with? ... what career will I pursue? ... what investment opportunities am I going to take advantage of?

Decisions ... Life changing decisions: College education ... career ... marriage ... investments. Do you know what's interesting about all of these decisions? They are not the most important decision that we make in life. There is one decision that is even more encompassing than all of those put together ... it's a decision that we make when we are presented with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Mark describes the very first thing Jesus did as He began His ministry:

"And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, ¡¥Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.' They immediately left their nets and followed Him."
(Mark 1:16-18)

The number one decision that gives us positive power is to make the decision to choose to follow Jesus Christ. If we make that decision to choose to follow Jesus Christ we will see that power unfold. Why do we follow Jesus Christ and what is that positive power? First of all, if we decide to follow Jesus Christ, He will give us direction.

Have you ever driven through the fog? Isn't it comforting when you're following behind another car. You just follow that car and you don't have to worry too much. All of a sudden they turn a different direction or reach their destination. Suddenly the concentration efforts go up ten-fold. You try to focus on the line in the street ... it's all up to you. You focus and give all your attention and do your best to stay on the road and hope you are not going to run off the road, hit something or have any problems.

The beautiful thing about following Jesus Christ is that it does the same thing for us in everything we do in our lives. I love the testimony that Derek Fisher gave a few weeks ago on the Hour of Power. Derek Fisher is a point guard for the Lakers basketball team. Derek said he wears wristbands that have the initials W-W-J-D ¡V what would Jesus do? That is a constant reminder to filter everything through what Jesus would do. That's the way he follows Jesus.

Many people question ... "If I follow Jesus, how do I know I'm not going to get burned? I've been a Christian all my life and I've faced problems, struggles and challenges ... it just doesn't seem like it always works out for me."

This is like the man who was shipwrecked. He ends up on a deserted island. He was able to build a hut from what he could get from his boat. He made a comfortable home for himself on the side of the beach. One day he was out gathering berries, nuts and bananas and as he returned he saw that the hut was in flames and there was smoke billowing up in the air. That night he slept in the cold. He was disheartened and discouraged and he couldn't believe that God had let him down like that again. First stranding him on the island ... then allowing his hut to be burned. The next morning he woke up and saw a ship anchored in the harbor and someone was rowing their boat out to meet him. As they greeted him, he said, "How did you know I was here?" They replied, "Well, we saw your smoke signals."

It is amazing how when we follow Jesus we realize that God will often direct us ... and when we are obstinate and don't want to follow His will, sometimes He just gives us some extra little nudge! When we follow Jesus, we find true peace. We find the same kind of peace we have when we are following someone through the fog. Christ is that beacon and light.

Jesus said, "Follow me." What else did he say? "And I will make you ..." When we follow Jesus, He gives us direction ... He gives us strength. A kite can only fly if it's anchored by a string ... when we let go of the mooring we find only in Jesus Christ, we lose our strength. We lose the ability to soar.

"I will make you..." He said. He makes us for a purpose and a reason. So when we make that one important, critical decision, the positive power begins to flow because He gives us direction ... He gives us strength ... He gives us meaning ... and He gives us self worth and dignity.

He came to the fishermen and He said, "I will make you fishers of men ... of My people." And immediately they threw down their nets and they followed Jesus.

When we follow Jesus He gives us meaning and He gives us significance. When we realize the meaning ... the purpose for living God gives us, we no longer struggle when the alarm goes off in the morning. Instead, we say to ourselves, "It's time to get up and go to my destiny to fulfill my calling." I'm not just going to work and doing a job, I'm fulfilling the task that God has given me.

What is the most important decision we have to make as God's people today? What is the positive power of one decision? ... To say "yes" to Jesus ... to follow Him.

If you have not made a decision to follow Jesus Christ, I want to give you an opportunity right now to make that decision. You do it by simply saying a prayer now ... and tomorrow morning when you wake up ... and the next morning ... one day at a time. You follow Jesus just today ... day by day. I ask that you say this prayer with me

Dear Jesus, thank You for loving me. Thank you for being my Guide. Thank you for being my God. I am going to follow You today, Jesus. Point me in the way You want me to go. Let me speak to the person You want me to speak to. Use me, O Lord, as Your own. Amen.