How to Make Good Choices
in the Middle of Bad Circumstances

“Abba, Father,” he (Jesus) cried out, “everything is possible for you.
Please take this cup of suffering away from me.
Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”
Mark 14:36

God has given each of us a free will, empowering us to make choices. Why would a God who has all the power in the universe do such a thing? The answer is very clear: He wanted us to fellowship with Him of our own free will. He didn’t want to have robots or puppets as companions.

We have the power to make many choices or decisions in our lives, and there are consequences attached to those choices. We can choose life or death; we can choose good or we can choose evil.

What characterizes the choices that Jesus made? He exercised His will, always choosing to do good. Jesus said many times: “I will” – in other words, “I choose” (Matthew 8:1-3).

Getting our thoughts and emotions aligned with our wills can sometimes be difficult, even excruciating. Here’s the ultimate example of how Jesus overcame His thoughts by choosing to exercise His will: They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He became deeply troubled and distressed. His thoughts and emotions were intense (Mark 14:32-34).

Jesus told Peter and James that His soul was crushed with grief to the point of death. He was fully aware of what He must face that particular day – dying on the cross and taking upon Himself the sins, diseases, and pains of mankind (Isaiah 53:4-5). Two different times, Jesus asked the Father, if it were possible, to allow this cup (His impending torture and death), to pass from Him. But Jesus had already decided He would do whatever the Father said. He exercised His choice to do whatever was asked of Him.

He prayed to the Father: … I want Your will to be done, not Mine” (Mark 14:35-36). What Jesus said here was: “…nevertheless not what I will [choose], but what thou wilt [choose].”

Aren’t you thankful that Jesus chose to do the Father’s will so you and I would have the opportunity to be redeemed from the curse of the law and be righteous before God!

This was a very significant moment for the Father as well as for Jesus. I believe that when Jesus asked the Father to take away that cup from Him, God may have said, “Son, I have searched everywhere, and there is no other way but the cross!”

Jesus made His choice because He loved the Father and He loved us. By choosing to carry out the Father’s will he didn’t only overcome death, hell, and the grave. He also overcame His mind, will, and emotions! It was there in the Gethsemane, in the midst of heavy sorrow, that He engaged His will to choose the will of the Father. He determined to align His will with God’s will. It was at that point the battle for good and evil was truly won!

Are you in the middle of bad circumstances? Jesus knows the intensity of what you’re feeling. He faced intense pressure so that you would have access to all the blessings of the righteous. It is the Father’s will that you choose to be in fellowship with Him and cast all that intense pressure that you are facing upon Him. In Gethsemane, Jesus made the good choice and covered your needs.

Will you make the choice to do the Father’s will? Now, that’s the choice-driven life!

Today’s Bible Reading:

2 Kings 15-16; Matt 21

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