When your eyes slowly open in the morning, right away you can decide HOW your day will go. You can rush to the shower, pour your coffee in yesterday’s travel mug, and shove a frozen meal in your bag as you run out the door. You can lie in bed and check your email, scroll through social media, and check the news. If you hastily get ready, you choose to be stressed at the start of your day. If you focus on what other people say or think, you choose to be influenced by others. Either way, the domino effect starts and may determine the rest of your day – all from just one decision!

You also have the choice to start your day well. In my head, if the Good Lord woke me up for another day, there must still be some purpose for me. I like to spend some time in the morning contemplating, praying, and listing things for which I am grateful. Wouldn’t you rather start a day built on gratefulness and grace instead of hurriedness or comparison? You get to choose HOW to start your day.

I think many people are afraid to make a decision because nobody wants to make the wrong decision. We struggle to know HOW to make the right decision, so we often choose indecision instead. It feels like simply putting off a decision is safer than risking a wrong decision. Over a lifetime of decision-making, I’ve learned it’s easier to change your mind after a bad decision than to make progress with no decision. A decision at least gets you moving, and you can always change direction if you realize you’re not headed where you want to go.

When you change your mind, you make a new decision – and keep getting better. You and I hold the power to determine HOW we will go through our days. I choose to make a decision rather than live with indecision. I decide to be grateful and hopeful, and in that I find grace. The dominos will keep falling toward a great day.