Making the Right Decisions in Tough Situations

It started out as a simple stroll. It was at the time when kings go forth to battle and Israel, under the military leadership of David's designate, Joab, was at war with the Ammonites. The narrative tells us that while Israel besieged Rabbah, David stayed in Jerusalem. On this particular spring evening and with his army doing well in battle, "it came to pass . . . that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house: and from the roof he saw a woman washing herself; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon" (2 Samuel 11:2, KJV).

Even if the Scripture did not tell us what happened next, chances are good we could have figured out how this drama unfolded. A handsome and powerful king with time on his hands, so to speak, looking across the way at a beautiful naked woman is fertile ground for trouble. Like Eve in the very beginning, and countless others since then, David found himself in the proverbial “wrong place at the wrong time.” In Genesis we read of Eve, "And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat" (3:6). Instead of sensing imminent danger when she was first approached by the serpent (Genesis 3:1) and removing herself from that place back to where she should have been, she stood to reason with the serpent and lost that battle. David, standing on the roof gazing at this beautiful specimen of God’s creation, had a moment in time to decide if he would make a hasty retreat and go back into the house. However, the narrative continues, "And David sent and enquired after the woman. And one said, Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness: and she returned unto her house" (2 Samuel 11:3-4).

For some of us, being innocently in the “wrong place at the wrong time” brings its own challenges. The magnitude may not be like that of David's, in this instance, but we find ourselves in situations we did not foresee and did not plan for. Suddenly, it seems, we are presented with an opportunity to do something we would not normally do. The seemingly helpful co-worker of the opposite sex, the busy-eyed flirtatious fellow believer, the chance to take something that is not ours, to look a something we should not be looking at, the compliment or email from someone we know we should stay away from for our integrity’s sake. Danger lurks and seductively so. Right there and then we have to decide; we must decide. It would be wonderful if we could all affirm that we would make or have always made the right decisions, but as we have seen, that is not always the case. The immediate consequences of his actions were that a husband was murdered and an innocent baby died. His circumstances remind us that we must always be vigilant; we must not let our guards down. We cannot afford to admire, think on, rationalize, or reason through the circumstances of our testings. Instead, let us be quick to "get out of there." It is not always easy but He has promised, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9). With His help and by His grace, we can make the right decisions.

How are you doing with your challenges?