Then they prayed and said, ‘Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which one of these two you have chosen…’ And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.” vss. 24, 26
Acts 1:15-17, 21-26
When the disciples wanted to add a person to their ranks to replace Judas, they had two candidates, each with the necessary credentials, so they cast lots, the first century equivalent of flipping a coin. And then they attributed the choice of Matthias to the Lord, who had presumably worked through the lots–and everyone was happy. For those used to secret ballots and elections it seems a strange way to choose leaders, yet we frequently find ourselves doing nearly the same thing in our decision making. One of the givens about life in this world is that decisions are not easy, and no matter how hard we try to weigh all the evidence, sometimes we reach the point of flipping a coin. The big question then is, does God direct the flip? But more important is the question, does it make any difference? Is one person God’s choice and the other not? The truth is that Justus probably could have served just as well as a disciple as did Matthias. And most of the time our big decisions, while clearly marking important crossroads in our lives, could go any way or another just fine. God will be with us no matter what–it’s what we do after the decision is made that has the most consequence for our futures.
Thought for the Day: How did I make my biggest decision?
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