*I received The Next Right Thing book from Revell in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links.*
The Next Right Thing: A Simple, Soulful Practice for Making Life Decisions by Emily P. Freeman came to me at the best time in my life. A juncture in which I am struggling to make important decisions about my future, work wise and in my life- as a mother, leader, and friend. A quote from the book sums up exactly what I’m going through right now-
“When you catch a tiny glimpse of the future, be sure not to smother it with your own agenda.”
Is anyone else guilty of this? I mean I am the queen of this. The control freak, keep it all together, do NOT ask for help so help me God—the WORST. I am so guilty of taking charge and not being willing to wait. I get an idea and want to implement it right away. I want to do it all. Juggle ALL the things. But, unfortunately- and also fortunately, that’s not how life works.
On the other hand- I also deeply struggle with really asking myself if this is MY decision or if I am letting fear, pressure, or anything else force it upon me. Freeman really knocks it out of the park when she says,
“The sad thing is many of us move through our entire lives not knowing what we want before, during, or after a decision. As a result, we live our lives as a shadow of our true selves, not fully knowing who we are and, in turn, who God is in us.”
Knowing who WE are, what we want, who GOD is and what He wants to do in our lives, is a huge part of the decision making process. And one that I don’t always take into consideration when I’m trying to come to a conclusion. This is a major focus of this book- and Freeman really gives us the tools to help us reach these decisions. But, she does it in such a gentle way. Not forcing more work on our shoulders- but allowing us to make up our minds without so much pressure.
Fear
I love that she also acknowledges fear, and how we allow it to affect our decision making processes. Sometimes forcing us out of doing something- or even the opposite, forcing us into doing something because we’re afraid of what will happen when we don’t. But, she also reminds us to let that fear know- hey we see and acknowledge you- but that fear doesn’t get the final say. That’s up to us!
Just Say No
I’m also working on finding a ‘No Mentor’ thanks to her guidance- someone who is willing to give you the final push into saying “no” when you know that it’s the right decision, but you’re hesitant to make the jump. We need encouragers in our journey, but also people who can hold our hands and remind us that maybe we need to put on the breaks.
Our Next Right Thing
Ultimately when we’re trying to decide on the next right thing in our life- we really need to “come home to ourselves.” Because-
“What if your next right thing is to settle in right where you are and come back home to yourself? Sound strange? Consider this: the only person you’re guaranteed to be with every day of your life is you. It doesn’t get much more home than that. So maybe it’s time to make some peace.”
This book has really helped me to take a step back and really give my decisions a moment to sink in before I make my final say. To ask myself, is this what I want? What God wants? What’s best in the present/ the future? I’ll sum it up with my favorite quote from the book,
“It doesn’t always matter which road you choose. What matters is God is with you.”
Truth. When I’m struggling on deciding my next right thing, that’s really the only truth I need.
If you’re having a hard time making a tough decision or struggling with finding your next right thing, this book is definitely worth the read. I don’t recommend binge-reading it in one sitting. I really enjoyed taking my time and highlighting important parts that I can turn to when another big decision comes my way. If this sounds like some advice that you also need, I hope you’ll give it a read.
