Pre-Sets

When Rush turned 14 years old I had a "talk" with her about having pre-sets about certain things. I told her as a girl (and a beautiful one at that) she needed to set in her mind things that would just "be" there like her favorite radio station pre-set by the push of a button. Some of those things were what behaviors she would not tolerate from a boy, what her boundaries would be when it comes to "dating"; things like that - things that I wanted her to have decided that she would not need to think about (and therefore, be subject to peer pressure or what have you).

We don't make decisions monthly about whether we are going to pay our mortgage/rent or daily as to whether we will eat that day or not. We have made a pre-set decision to do those things. Why not make pre-set decisions regarding our Christianity?

Pastor Steve Gray says this about pre-sets in "My Absurd Religion by Which I Make My Living":

"So why, when it comes to religion, is everything always subject to our feelings? Because the humanistic gospel caters to our feelings. Our energy is spent constantly analyzing our feelings and then acting accordingly. What a confusing way to live!

Life works much better when we make decisions that are no longer subject to our feelings. There are some thigs we should always do, and some things we should never do. For example, a Christian should always go to church, always tithe, always worship, and always nurture the fruit of the Spirit. Why? Because the Bible says to, and Jesus did these same things. Some things we should never do are get cranky, gossip, get bitter or judgemental, or return evil for evil. Those are just a few examples. They aren't based on our feelings. They are part of the pre-set behaviors we adopt when we decide to live like Christians. It's much easier to live by pre-sets than to make decisions based on our shifting feelings or moods. It actually becomes a stress reliever."

Why not spend time to make pre-sets for yourself personally, in your Christian life, in your parenting (make pre-sets to determine means of dealing with issues so that you aren't making your decisions based on feelings when those issues arise) and in your financial life (just to name a few)? It will make things easier and less stressful when you don't have to weigh your options or your feelings when something comes up.