The Power of Choice
By Christine Upchurch, M.S.
One day recently I had just finished shopping at Target, and was driving to go meet my son and his father at a nearby restaurant for an end-of-school-year celebration. As I stopped my car at the stop sign at the parking lot exit, I realized that I could get to the restaurant either by going left or right.
If I went right, the route would be a little longer but the traffic was likely to be lighter. Turning left would be a more direct route, but I would have to travel on roads that generally carry much more traffic. My goal was to get there quickly. As I paused, I looked both ways and noticed that there were no cars coming from either direction, giving me the opportunity to make a choice. Which way should I go, left or right?
If I waited at the stop sign for much longer, I knew that I was likely going to miss the opportunity to take the left, as taking a left at that intersection is often problematic. In fact pausing for very long could mean that traffic would make it become impossible to go at all. So a quick decision was imperative to arriving at my destination in a timely manner. In fact, a decision was essential to getting there at all.
As I pondered this seemingly mundane choice, I realized that this is symbolic of the many decisions we face in our lives. We need to make a choice in order to achieve forward momentum toward any goal that we have. It doesn’t matter whether our goal is to get to a restaurant, find a better job, connect with friends, get into better physical condition, become more organized, or find a soul mate. A decision is a necessary part of manifesting our desires.
When contemplating a decision, we automatically access information from within – both the rational and the intuitive – as well as from around us, in order to make our choice. Sometimes we put off making decisions because of fear; fear of making a “bad” choice, fear of hurting others, fear of creating difficulty for ourselves. But indecision is toxic.
Yes, sometimes taking extra time can offer us additional insight and information. In the example above, if I hadn’t been familiar with the roads, before exiting the parking lot I would have found it necessary to access directions, either from another person or through the use of technology. But once informed, it wouldn’t make sense to just remain at the stop sign indefinitely.
While we may sometimes feel as though we have the potential of making a bad decision, on some level there really isn’t a wrong decision because each choice leads us to more information. After experiencing the natural consequences of a decision, we can make more empowered choices in the future.
In this simple driving example, if I chose to go the more trafficked route, I may have realized that traffic wasn’t as bad as I had feared it could be during the lunchtime rush, and I would have been happy to have arrived at my destination more quickly. Alternatively, I might have found the traffic to be heavy that time of day, and then may have come to the conclusion that I probably would have arrived more relaxed if had I chosen the less trafficked, more circuitous route. Either way, I could use that information when selecting routes in the future.
Even acting upon (or ignoring) inner guidance can help us hone our intuitive skills for making better decisions. In the driving example, let’s say that I had had a feeling that I needed to avoid one route, but chose not to heed that inner voice. If I found myself stuck in traffic because of a construction detour, I would have recognized the validity of my intuition and be more apt to act upon it in the future. Hence this seemingly “poor” decision would ultimately be beneficial.
Making a choice is our way of saying yes to forward movement, and it allows us the opportunity to explore more “destinations” within our lives. With each decision we gain more information, because we experience the consequences of our choice, including how we feel. As we navigate our way through our many life choices, we gain greater clarity about who we are and what we truly desire. Decisions not only help us clarify what we want, but also provide an essential step in manifesting it.
As Abraham says through Esther Hicks, “a decision is a summoning of life.” It is by aligning with our choices – which includes taking action – that we vibrationally engage with the Universe to create what we desire.
So if you want to live life more fully, in each moment ask yourself which way you want to go: left or right?
One day recently I had just finished shopping at Target, and was driving to go meet my son and his father at a nearby restaurant for an end-of-school-year celebration. As I stopped my car at the stop sign at the parking lot exit, I realized that I could get to the restaurant either by going left or right.
If I went right, the route would be a little longer but the traffic was likely to be lighter. Turning left would be a more direct route, but I would have to travel on roads that generally carry much more traffic. My goal was to get there quickly. As I paused, I looked both ways and noticed that there were no cars coming from either direction, giving me the opportunity to make a choice. Which way should I go, left or right?
If I waited at the stop sign for much longer, I knew that I was likely going to miss the opportunity to take the left, as taking a left at that intersection is often problematic. In fact pausing for very long could mean that traffic would make it become impossible to go at all. So a quick decision was imperative to arriving at my destination in a timely manner. In fact, a decision was essential to getting there at all.
As I pondered this seemingly mundane choice, I realized that this is symbolic of the many decisions we face in our lives. We need to make a choice in order to achieve forward momentum toward any goal that we have. It doesn’t matter whether our goal is to get to a restaurant, find a better job, connect with friends, get into better physical condition, become more organized, or find a soul mate. A decision is a necessary part of manifesting our desires.
When contemplating a decision, we automatically access information from within – both the rational and the intuitive – as well as from around us, in order to make our choice. Sometimes we put off making decisions because of fear; fear of making a “bad” choice, fear of hurting others, fear of creating difficulty for ourselves. But indecision is toxic.
Yes, sometimes taking extra time can offer us additional insight and information. In the example above, if I hadn’t been familiar with the roads, before exiting the parking lot I would have found it necessary to access directions, either from another person or through the use of technology. But once informed, it wouldn’t make sense to just remain at the stop sign indefinitely.
While we may sometimes feel as though we have the potential of making a bad decision, on some level there really isn’t a wrong decision because each choice leads us to more information. After experiencing the natural consequences of a decision, we can make more empowered choices in the future.
In this simple driving example, if I chose to go the more trafficked route, I may have realized that traffic wasn’t as bad as I had feared it could be during the lunchtime rush, and I would have been happy to have arrived at my destination more quickly. Alternatively, I might have found the traffic to be heavy that time of day, and then may have come to the conclusion that I probably would have arrived more relaxed if had I chosen the less trafficked, more circuitous route. Either way, I could use that information when selecting routes in the future.
Even acting upon (or ignoring) inner guidance can help us hone our intuitive skills for making better decisions. In the driving example, let’s say that I had had a feeling that I needed to avoid one route, but chose not to heed that inner voice. If I found myself stuck in traffic because of a construction detour, I would have recognized the validity of my intuition and be more apt to act upon it in the future. Hence this seemingly “poor” decision would ultimately be beneficial.
Making a choice is our way of saying yes to forward movement, and it allows us the opportunity to explore more “destinations” within our lives. With each decision we gain more information, because we experience the consequences of our choice, including how we feel. As we navigate our way through our many life choices, we gain greater clarity about who we are and what we truly desire. Decisions not only help us clarify what we want, but also provide an essential step in manifesting it.
As Abraham says through Esther Hicks, “a decision is a summoning of life.” It is by aligning with our choices – which includes taking action – that we vibrationally engage with the Universe to create what we desire.
So if you want to live life more fully, in each moment ask yourself which way you want to go: left or right?
Published in New Spirit Journal Septermber 2012