It can be said that life is a series of decisions, and growing up means learning to make good decisions. Good decisions don’t come to us by default, so how do we learn to make good decisions?

Proverbs 22:6 is a memory verse I have had since I was a very young boy – it says “Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.” This verse is primarily an instruction to parents, but you can personalize this verse as well.

Here is what I mean by that. You have already been training to make choices as I mentioned above. What will I wear today? Will I study thoroughly for my school test? Will I obey my parents? Will I lie to someone today? Will I pray and study my Bible today?

You choose the life you have by the choices you make. Some of our choices are simple and may only impact a particular day, but some choices become part of a foundation that establishes future choices. If we choose to tell a small lie, it becomes easier to tell a bigger lie. Left uncorrected, lying can become a pattern. Conversely, good decisions build on previous good choices. In order to make the right decision, we must know what the wrong decision is. God’s word encourages us to choose life, by keeping God’s Word near to us through studying it each day.

“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;…”(Deuteronomy 30:19).

The decisions you will make in life – whether you will go to college, what career you will pursue, who you will marry, buying a home, purchasing a new car, or any number of other decisions – will all be secondary to the spiritual decisions you will make in life.

Do your due diligence in making important decisions – consider the ramifications, count the costs, make sure it lines up with God’s character – but don’t hesitate on important decisions too long, or you can run the risk of missing good opportunities in your life.

How do you make the right decisions in life? You make the right decisions in life by basing those decisions on proper application from God’s instruction we find in the Bible. By setting the right goals. By getting the right education and being prepared for life.

Let me leave you with two more recommendations. First, choose your friends carefully – they can and do have a tremendous impact in your life, and consequently your choices.

“The righteous should choose his friends carefully, for the way of the wicked leads them astray,” (Proverbs 12:26).

Secondly, get advice on your decisions from a variety of people – not just peers. This means parents, pastor, school counselors or other knowledgeable individuals who can assist you in making good, long-lasting decisions. Don’t forget to include God in asking for His direction in those decisions as well.

God desires for you to have a good life, and a good life comes from making right decisions.