Knowing The Right Thing To Do

Knowing the Right Thing to Do

Never get tired of doing good. 2 Thessalonians 3:13

My first class on my first day at the University of Minnesota was a psychology class that met three times a week for large-group lectures and twice a week for small-group discussions. On my way into the lecture hall, I was met by a guy with a box of notes for the entire quarter. He was selling them for twenty dollars, and lots of people were buying them. The notes would make attending the three lectures each week unnecessary, I was told. But I wasn’t sure this was a good idea.

I questioned the guy about the notes. What if they weren’t complete notes? What if the professor changed the lecture since the last course? How could I know the notes were accurate? He answered all the questions well enough to convince me—or at least for me to rationalize the need for them. I bought the notes.

But I was unsettled in my spirit about the whole thing. As the course progressed, I couldn’t bring myself to skip the lectures. I found that the notes were accurate, that the professor didn’t deviate from one quarter to the next, and that I really could have skipped without missing much. But it felt like cheating. I wouldn’t have been earning my own A if I hadn’t attended class myself. And I kept hearing my mother’s words: “It’s sometimes easier to do the wrong thing, but it’s always better to do the right thing.”

I learned a lesson from that experience: don’t waver from doing what you know to be right and true. I’ve found that the unsettled feeling in my conscience is there for a reason. It’s a God-given warning signal that I’m about to cross a line and violate His character. When I ignore that signal, I end up regretting it. But when I pay attention to the truth He has instilled in me through the course of my life, even when it isn’t easy, I’m glad I did. Many people say they regret doing the wrong thing, but I rarely if ever have heard someone say they regret doing the right thing. It’s always worth it to do what’s right.

Uncommon Key > It’s more satisfying and fulfilling to do a difficult thing that’s right than an easy thing that’s wrong. When your conscience speaks, listen.