that still small voice that people won't listen to...

"The impulse of the original mind, which everyone possesses, is to abhor evil and exalt goodness." - Introduction to The Divine Principle*

I used to be really concerned with making the "right" decision. Perhaps it is the training I received while on the debate team in high school, but I like to research things, especially if I am embarking on something new. When I am making a big decision (and sometimes not so big a decision), I get at it form every possible angle. In short, I have a tendency to over evaluate.

For example, my husband and I recently purchased a new car. While it only took a few hours to actually do a test drive and sign the papers, I spent about a month before hand doing research. I consulted consumer reports, expert websites, I got advice from friends and family. I compared SUVs to Minivans. I did a price and reliability comparison between the top five brands. Followed by a hundred choruses of "well what do you think?", to my husband. And I did it over and over again. Always second guessing, worrying about making the right decision. We could have gone on like this for another month if our current car hadn't broken down again and forced us to pull the trigger. In that frantic state, all the head spinning research went out the window and we made a quick decision. 24 hours later we were driving around in a new minivan with plenty of room for our two boys and the books full of research it took to get us there. While it's good to be prepared, it's also exhausting! At some point, you have to get off the endless information treadmill and make your choice. We ended up with what we had originally wanted before I made a personal crusade out of vetting it. It makes you wonder if all that work was really worth it.

When it came down to it, it wasn't the hundreds of hours spent on research that helped make a choice. It was simply listening to our own intuition. After all, there is no full proof "right" decision when it comes to choosing a car. Otherwise everyone would be driving around in the same model. Everyone has different needs, different values, and different ideas about what constitutes a bargain. It can only ever be the "right" decision for YOU.

Too often we think that the "right" decisions apply to bigger issues in life as well.

When I was deciding whether or not to go to College or STF*, I prayed to God for guidance. "Please God, help me to make the right decision." There it is again, that tricky little word, "right". I was sincere in my prayer. I really did want to make the right decision. I knew that I was leaning one way, but I was fully prepared to do whatever God wanted me to. That's when I heard God speak to me. It wasn't a booming, clouds parting, kind of voice. No, it was soft. In fact, it was hardly a voice at all. I only call it that because I lack any other way to describe it. It wasn't a sound audible by the ears, but it rose up inside of me. A complete sense of knowing. It said (or it was) "Whatever you choose is the right decision as long as you take responsibility for it. I want what you want, and I will always be with you."

Sure, sometimes God asks people to do things that they really don't want to, but most of the time he is like any other Father. He just wants his kids to be happy. And even if you make the "wrong" decision, and go down a path that you didn't foresee, it doesn't mean you've failed. "I will always be with you." No matter what. If you can learn from the experience and grow, then God has already turned it into a victory.

We use the term "original mind"*, but we seldom actually exercise the muscle. The Divine Principle says that it is in all of us. It is where God can communicate freely. It is there. Waiting. All the time. We merely need to tune our ears inward and listen.

It's nice to feel like other's agree with our choices. Especially if these "others" have some sort of degree or expertise. In the end though, you are the one who has to live with it.

So, what if you valued your own opinion as much as everyone else's?

What if, it's not so much about "right" and "wrong", but about being able to take responsibility for the choices that you make?

What if, you already have all of the answers you need? You just have to listen to the whispers of your original mind.

In the immortal words of Jiminy Cricket: "always let your conscience be your guide."







*For my non-Unificationist readers:

- The Divine Principle (DP): the teachings of Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the main theological text book of the Unification Church (UC).

- STF: Special Task Force. A program designed as a leadership training, and spiritual mission for high school graduates or college age students of the UC. The program has been revamped and is now called "Generation Peace Academy" (GPA)

- Original Mind: The original mind, or original nature is the one that existed in human beings before the fall of man. The DP teaches that humans struggle within themselves between their original God given nature, and the "satanic" or fallen nature that was acquired and inherited as a result of the fall.