Making Better Decisions

A man was once at a laundromat doing his laundry. As he walked down the row of dryers to find an empty one, he noticed that every dryer was in use. As he looked more closely, he noticed that they each had only one sock in them. He found the man who had put his socks in all the dryers and asked him why he had done this. He explained, "I got sick of losing socks in the dryer. This way I can keep track of each of them." Not every solution to a problem is necessarily the best solution!

How often do you look to the Catechism or the Scriptures for solutions to your problems? Yes, I mean even the "modern" problems like paying bills and broken down cars. You might be surprised at how many answers there are in the Bible. The book of Proverbs, as well as Sirach and Wisdom are so filled with fantastic advice, and yet many Catholics have no idea how much help for their lives is to be found in there.

Those who have read the lives of the Saints, or wonderful works by them (St. Francis De Sales, St. Therese of Lisieux, etc.) find that their counsel is some of the most practical you can imagine. They went through difficult experiences much the same as ours, and how they chose to deal with it is significant (they did end up Saints, after all, right?).

Before your next "big challenge" comes into your life, start spending some time reading the words of God and the testimonies of His people. You very well may find that you are preparing yourself in more ways than you can imagine. Remember, the Holy Spirit cannot bring to mind important truths, and pieces of wisdom, if you never read them in the first place!