Right and Wrong

GUEST BLOGGER: Shirley Andersen

From birth to death, life is a learning process.  

No one is born with clear and precise knowledge of every little detail of their life. I think most of my life has been way more trial and error than, without a doubt, knowing what is the right decision for my life at this very moment, much less right decisions long term.

My mother used to say I’d argue with a fence post so I’m pretty sure I made wrong decisions. I’m hoping I’m not the only person down through history that hasn’t always been right. Wouldn’t it be nice that the majority of the time we were right, that we made wise decisions? Wouldn’t I be brilliant if I knew the answer to that? If there were only a formula to always know the right way to do things.

Yep,  as a child I was pretty stubborn,  but there are just so many times you make the same wrong choice that you start to get a little smarter and what happens when I’m an adult with kids of my own and I’m responsible for their life by teaching and training them what is right and wrong. I realize I have to make smart and right decisions for my kids. I did learn several things as a child. Things like “don’t cross your eyes as they may stay that way”, “Don’t try to stop or hold a sneeze in because you can blow the back of your head off.”

Yep, these are silly, but I really started listening to what I was being told as a teenager when I started going to church. I was 14 and in a great church. I had only attended church as a kid very haphazardly. You know, if the weather was nice we went to the lake, but if it was raining we went to church.

At this little church here in town were some of the best Christians this young impressionable kid had ever met. Really good Sunday school teacher, the Pastor’s wife. 

When she started teaching, I learned so much. Who would ever have dreamed that in the book of Ruth, Boaz, commanded that “Handsfull of purpose” was left for Ruth, which was just a little extra grain that she could take home and feed herself and mother-in-law? I thought that was so good!  “Handsfull of Purpose” what else was in this book?  She taught me so many different treasures. 

Then one day she said, you can read the Bible yourself. Most of my life I thought we couldn’t, I wasn’t Catholic so I thought, if God strikes me down, think what the Pastor’s wife would have to explain.

Here I am, 14 years old freshman at Rider and I start reading the Bible.  

She tells me to start reading in John!!!  Amazing, John Wayne wrote in the Bible, I’d been told it was God. John Wayne was sorta God to anyone who saw his movies.  

Yep, I found out quick it wasn’t John Wayne.

I really liked it and started reading it a lot. I started asking so many questions that the Pastor’s wife told me to write my questions down and give them to her. She took them home and answered every question. Then they started having me to dinner one night so I could ask questions and they could help guide me.  The Pastor started helping a young Airman on a different night until they decided to have us meet on the same night. Yep, I was thrilled because I had already claimed him as mine; he just didn’t know it yet.  Yep, it was Andy, my future husband. We started memorizing scripture together. 

Our first was II Chronicles 7:14.

 At this point I was not saved but was a little apprehensive. Then Missionary Jack Baskins came and on Sunday morning on Father’s Day I was 16 and I got saved that morning. That was definitely the right decision. I had started reading the Bible and praying.

I learned when I read the Bible daily that I could make decisions that were right because I knew that God was leading me. I haven’t always made the right decision but I’m much better at it when I read and pray listening to God through the Holy Spirit. Instead of making the wrong decision, I get in the Bible and Read and Study then pray.

When we started discipleship it just reinforced what I was taught years ago and had tried to live by over the years. 

Yep, there were many times I did make the wrong decision but reading and praying really is the right decision. 

Pray for guidance, Read, Study, and pray

Yep, that’s the right decision!!!