When you are faced with an opportunity or a choice, it’s not uncommon to ask God to show the direction you should take by orchestrating the circumstances. If the circumstances are favorable, you may conclude that God is leading. When they are unfavorable, you may believe God wants you to go a different direction.

One of the critical problems with this form of decision making is that circumstances are not self-authenticating or self-interpreting. You and I can view them through a lens that imposes all kinds of meaning into the realities of the moment. If my car does not start on a cold morning, do I conclude God wants me to stay home from work? If my mate encourages me to purchase that Caribbean cruise we both want, but cannot afford, is this a sign from the Lord? If I have a marginal score on the GRE exam, does that mean I should stop my formal education? If people profess faith in Christ more quickly in Brazil than in Russia, should we devote all resources to Brazil?

Sometimes favorable circumstances should not be the deciding factor. For example, Paul describes in 2 Corinthians 2:12 ff. that he arrived in Troas “and found the Lord had opened a door for me.” We don’t know what this looked like, but it appears to be a circumstantial indication that Paul could have been effective there. But because Titus was not there, Paul decided to leave Troas and travel to Macedonia instead. Some favorable circumstances were not sufficient in themselves for Paul to deem it wise to minister in Troas.

There are occasions when God calls us to move forward in adverse circumstances. This was true for Paul in his ministry to the community of Philippi. In 1 Thessalonians 2:2 he writes, “We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition.” Some would have looked at this situation and concluded that Philippi was not ready for the gospel, and that investing in this community would be a waste of time and effort. But Paul chose to persevere in spite of the adversity.

Sometimes obstacles are placed in front of us to make us more reliant on God. Other times they are roadblocks to deter us. (See Balaam’s encounter with a stubborn donkey in Numbers 22.) For that reason, it’s wiser to make circumstances a small factor in our decision making grid. Our penchant for self-deception is too great to put them at the center of the major decisions of our lives. That spot belongs to the moral will of God. As we grow to know God’s character and his expressed will for our lives, we will be more apt to make wise choices apart from circumstances rather than allowing circumstances—and our interpretation of them—to dictate our decision making.