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Along Life’s Way
From Doubt to Decision
By Lois E. Wilson
When we doubt, we are being skeptical or uncertain. We may not have
enough information to make decisions based upon the actualities of a
situation..
There is the story of the person who couldn’t decide which of two
available seats looked more comfortable. His indecisiveness caused him
to hesitate so long that he missed the chance to sit on either. So he
had to sit on the floor. He let his uncertainty paralyze his action; he
lost his opportunity.
John Foster observed: “A man without decision can never be said to
belong to himself; he is as a wave of the sea, or a feather in the air
which every breeze blows about us.”
Lord Greville claimed, “Human knowledge is the parent of doubt.” One
might also say that human knowledge is the child of doubt. Francis
Bacon put it this way: “In contemplation, if a man begins with
certainties he shall end in doubts; but if he be content to begin with
doubts, he shall end in certainties.”
At all stages of life, we have important decisions to make. Young
adults must decide whether they want to go to college and where. They
usually decide on a life-partner, where to settle, whether to buy a
home—we all are faced with many important decisions.
Seeds of doubt may scatter around us. They might take root and sprout
into uncertainties which continue to grow into a doubt tree. It is not
beneficial to let indecision become habitual.
Doubts can be the motivations which spur us to search. We strive to
find facts to support any decision we are considering. The doubt tree
develops a trunk which sends forth branches. The branches could be
called: research, observation, knowledge, exploration, and insight.
If we are serious about making wise decisions, these branches can be
routes to solving our indecisiveness. Our goal can be to discover
pieces of certainty and put them together to form the fruit of the
doubt tree—truth.
Dealing with our doubts creates for us confidence; our doubts change
chance into purposeful decision. We no longer whirl at the whim of the
wind—we are wisely traveling toward our chosen destination. It is
rewarding—decision is becoming a habit!
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