A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
James 1:8

Be decisive!  You will always have to take decisions.  You will be blamed or rewarded for your decisions.  You must know how to take decisions.

Double-minded people are unstable and indecisive.  There is nothing worse than being under the leadership of someone who is indecisive.  It is time to make up your mind and take the crucial decisions that God wants you to make.  Why do some people not take decisions?

Some people do not take decisions because of their phlegmatic temperaments.  Phlegmatic people are slow thinking men whose first option is to rest or do nothing.  It takes great effort for them to rise out of their inertia and take a step.

People are indecisive because they have not thought through their plans carefully.

People are indecisive because they do not want to follow things through to their logical conclusions.  A lot of your indecision would be overcome if you understand that you are already committed and there is no way out.  Stopping in the middle is madness.  You might as well finish what you started because you have one leg in the boat already.

In war, indecision can cost you everything.

The Indecision of Germany in the Second World War

Adolf Hitler, an evil man, lost the Second World War because he wavered at the most critical moment when victory was served to him on a silver platter.

The Second World War was started by Adolf Hitler when he invaded Poland on the 1st of September 1939.  After the invasion of Poland, England sent its armies into France to help contain the German aggression.  But after their quick victory in Poland, Germany decided to invade France, Holland and Belgium.  The English armies had crossed into France to join the war and fight Germany.  But they were no match for the modern and well-prepared German armies.  The entire British army was pushed back to the sea and encircled at a place called Dunkirk.  The British army was now a virtual prisoner of the German army and could have been easily wiped out at Dunkirk.  But that is not what happened.

The British were effectively trapped at the seaside with nowhere to go. It was at this point that Hitler, acted strangely and became indecisive.  The Panzer divisions asked for permission to attack but permission was not given.

Adolf Hitler was gripped by indecision and wavered between destroying the British armies and allowing them to escape across the sea.  Whilst Adolf Hitler wavered, the entire British army escaped across the sea.  They entered into ships and sailed across to safety, where they would re-group and return to defeat Germany a few years later.  Adolf Hitler missed the opportunity to wipe out his greatest enemies in one swoop.  This mistake cost Germany the Second World War.

When it was too late, Hitler had a change of mind and decided to attack England in what was called Operation Sea Lion.  But he had missed his chance to defeat the British when they were at his mercy.  His decision to attack England was too late and Operation Sea Lion ended up being a massive failure.

Indecision in Ministry

Many pastors do not take decisions when they should.  They waver when they should strike firmly and decisively.  When a person shows signs of disloyalty and should be dismissed, many leaders play around with the decision of dismissing them.  But disloyalty is a leadership emergency and must be dealt with decisively.  The best place to kill a cobra is in the egg.  When you have a good chance to deal with certain things you must act decisively.

There are people who have opportunities to begin churches.  But they are simply indecisive.  I started my church when I was a student in Medical School.  That was the good and opportune time for me to take a decision to be in the ministry.  If I had failed to start the ministry at that time, I would have missed the opportunity of a lifetime.  Years later, I would meet people who tried to start churches in their middle age.  Some of them really struggled and became bitter at God.  I remember a brother who claimed that God had asked him to start a church in London. He lived in London for years and got himself into great difficulty before he eventually started his ministry. By the time he got going, he was laden and burdened with problems that destroyed the church he started.

Do not make the mistake of indecision when you must act quickly.

by Dag Heward-Mills