"But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way."
-Daniel 1:8
Last week I was playing basketball as I normally do twice a week. The game was close to finishing, with our team only two points away from winning (in pickup basketball, normal shots are worth one point, three pointers are worth two). Our best shooter was checking the ball with the other team, while I stood on the right wing. The defending team was playing a zone defense, which is very uncommon in pickup basketball. A "zone defense" refers to a defensive strategy in which the players defend an area of the court, as opposed to a "man defense" in which the players defend a specified opposing player.
It turned out that the opposing team's zone defense left me wide open on the right wing behind the three point line. The ball was checked up, and my teammate passed me the ball. One of my teammates called out to me to shoot the ball, since I was wide open. However, I am not a great three point shooter; I am much better at layups and post ups. As I caught the ball, I noticed that the defender guarding our best shooter started sprinting over to contest my shot. I immediately realized the best course of action was to simply pass the ball right back to my teammate. I passed him the ball, he shot the ball, and we won the game.
One of the often overlooked parts of basketball and sports in general is decision making. Many people believe that all you need to be good at basketball is skill. Of course skill is important in basketball, but good decision making is almost just as important. A highly skilled player that makes poor decisions or is indecisive can often hurt a team more than help a team. Take the story above as an example. When I was passed the ball, I could have done a number of different things. Many people would have simply shot the ball, regardless of their skill level. I also could have chosen to drive to the basket, but making a layup would only give our team one point. Passing the ball to a superior shooter would increase our chances of winning the game.
Some of you reading this may not quite understand all of the basketball references I just made, but the general idea remains- decision making is important. The verse at the beginning of this post is from the book of Daniel. It describes how Daniel chose not to indulge in the choice foods that the king of Babylon offered to him. Could Daniel have chosen to eat the king's food and still followed God's will? I'm sure he could have. However, it would have been much harder for Daniel to see God as his provider if he accepted the provision of the king of Babylon.
Making good choices can be hard because sometimes there is no wrong choice. I could have chosen to shoot the ball without anyone questioning me because I was open. However, I chose to pass rather than shoot because there was a better choice available. Also, making the right choice can be hard because it's not always the easy choice. Many people would have shot the ball because they could experience the satisfaction of shooting the winning shot. Passing the ball gives away that chance. However, even though I would have rather had the glory of the game winning shot, I chose to make the better play.
When Daniel chose to only eat vegetables instead of the choice foods, I'm sure it was hard for him. He probably had moments where he wished he'd have chosen the king's food. However, he stuck to his decision. How? He prayed. Chapter one of Daniel doesn't mention anything about Daniel praying, but later in the book it describes that he was a man of prayer. I believe Daniel was only able to make the best choice by praying and obeying God's will.
Our lives are full of choices. Some are small and inconsequential, others can change the course of life. Some choices are harder to make than others. However, we need to bring all things before God in prayer. God has given us the Holy Spirit to be our counselor. We should consult Him at all times to make the best decisions we can in our lives. Only God knows what is best for our lives, and only God can give us the strength to make the hard choices.
-Smart
