Would You Rather

     My aim in writing has always been to encourage myself and others to get into God’s Word to find answers that help us live better lives.  This morning while reading 1 Thessalonians 4, I recognized the practicality of Paul's instructions to the church in Thessalonica.  He was revealing a code of conduct for Christians.  This was a timely lesson for me.  It helped me to focus on my personal value system by reviewing an outline of what is pleasing to God.  In 1 Thessalonians 4:9, we read, “Now concerning brotherly love you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.”  This passage gives three specific steps:  aspire to live quietly, mind your own affairs, and work with your hands.  It then concludes, “so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one” (1 Thessalonians 4:12, ESV).  By reading verse seven last, rather than before verse 9, 11, and 12, we can see the overriding reason that Paul is giving this advice, “For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness.”

     Once a week during the time of social distancing, we have gathered with our small group from church using the zoom application.  This puts us face-to-face at a distance.  We have been encouraged to have discussions on sermon notes, but occasionally break from routine and have a fun social activity.  It was suggested that we play an online game.  There are many options to choose from, but we decided to use a familiar conversational game that our family often played on Saturday evenings after worship service.  You have probably heard of this game called “Would You Rather.” 

     There are several versions of this game, one a board game where you would predict the answer of the majority of the players and, if correct, would move the number of spaces designated by a roll of the dice.   Another version is the one we played with a deck of cards.  One player would read two optional choices; you must choose one option, both or neither was never an option.  As much as we would like to be problem solvers and think we could control our experience of the least undesirable option, alternatives are not allowed.  For example, if asked, “would you rather be hot all the time, or cold all the time.”  Using airconditioning will not remedy hotness, nor will putting on a sweater or sitting in a hot tub be the solution for coldness.   It is a permanent condition. Would you rather be hot all the time, or cold all the time?  Most things we decide in life may not appear to be so cut and dry, this or that, but in truth, the most significant decision we make in this life will affect our eternity.  As illogical as it may seem to us, some will make the opposite decision that we do.

     So, if you are playing a game where your decision is final, your circumstances cannot be changed, one would believe we are more likely to select the least undesirable outcome.  The design of this game is to help us use our experiences and logically conclude that one option is better than another.  Not all questions focus on the least undesirable but may reveal what you prefer more.  For example, “Would you rather be super rich or super intelligent?”  We decided to try our hand at creating questions focused on choices one might make as a believer in Jesus Christ during a pandemic.  We tried to think of real-life scenarios where one could see themselves in a situation and make a choice that seemed best to them.  For example, “You go to the grocery store and find that meat supplies are scarce, would you rather buy old, breaded chicken from the freezer section, or go without meat for the next two weeks?”  If you were a vegetarian, your choice is simple, but to the meat-lover, one would have to determine whether meat that tasted like cardboard was better than no meat at all.  Another question, “Your kitchen appliances are old and need replacing, you will either lose your microwave or your oven.  Neither can be replaced.  Would you rather spare your microwave and lose your range or visa-versa?  As a meal preparer, you may answer one way, but as one who only consumes meals that are placed before them, the answer could be entirely different.

     As we continued to play this game, the questions turned toward our walk of faith.  So often we allow our decisions to be guided by preferences.  This game was not intended to create debate over our Spiritual choices, but to provide us Spiritual insight that we may need to dig deeper faced with the challenge of this or that.  Interestingly, as one who designed the questions, I learned about my own value system while playing the game.  I realized that my preference might not stack up to what the Word of God reveals.  I will pose a few tough questions for you to evaluate your own choice.  Take a moment then to reflect on how you arrived at that conclusion. 

•  You have a neighbor who is not practicing social distancing as recommended by our state officials.  Would you rather find the strength not to judge them nor gossip behind their backs, or would you rather find the opportunity to witness to them if something undesirable happened as a result of their not adhering to safety guidelines?  Just like in the real “Would You Rather” game, you can one make one choice.  Would you ask God to help you be less judgmental and more loving, or would you ask Him to open doors to speak the gospel into the lives of those devasted by the consequences of their actions?

We know that in reality, we can receive answers to both prayers, but as we begin to see our preferences unfold, might we find ourselves baffled by which choice might be better according to Scriptures when we try to determine what it means to “love our neighbor?”

•  You notice a post on Social Media.  Someone you know who loves the Lord and has much influence on other believers has asked their Christian friends to join a private group to discuss their opinions about the loss of human rights.  They suggest that they know about backhanded conspiracies meant to harm Christians.  The request to join this group leaves you suspicious that what they are doing isn’t wise or Biblical but more driven by opinion.  Would you rather send them a private message asking them to explain why they are creating this group, or would you hide their post and not get involved in their faith journey?

This question really gets at the heart of one’s perception and may help us see what we determine to call our business.  Social media is a magnet that can easily shift one’s opinion of another person quickly.  When seeking God's ways, how might He instruct us to use a tool that can either create unity or division wisely?

•   You have been asked to give your testimony at church through a video series called “God at Work.”  You have two stories to tell.  One story could ruin your reputation and would require a great deal of humility to expose.  This story has the potential to help many people, you do not know, make a decision for Christ, but you will not learn its’ impact until you arrive in heaven.  The second story isn’t so revealing; however, this story may destroy your relationship with several close friends.  This story may impact the salvation of your best friend, whom you’ve been praying for since childhood.  You can only tell one story, not both.  Would you rather produce more fruit by sharing the deeper-rooted story, but never learn the impact, or tell the easier story, and learn that your best friend’s heart is sealed with Christ for eternity.

One can look at this question from a few different angles, one how important is your reputation?  And how important is it to you to produce much fruit?  Obviously, the only thing we can offer is a story, and the outcome is up to God.  How well do we understand the work that God prepared for us before our lives began?  Would you lean into your own understanding to make this decision, or would you cry out to God for the right answer?

     This article isn’t intended to judge anyone’s answer, but to give us a glimpse on how we approach decision making.  For me, these questions cause me to want to dig deeper and to understand Scriptures more fully.  How often do I understand that I am making decisions based on preference rather than on Biblical instructions?  It seems like a good time to remind myself of an important verse found in Isaiah 55:8-9 (ESV), “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”