The other day I took a strengths assessment for work. For each question in this particular assessment you are provided two options and you must select the one that best describes you. You only have 20 seconds to consider each of the options, so there isn’t much time to think. One of the questions in the assessment asked if you are a person who makes decisions with your head or with your heart. This question stumped me.

In these types of assessments, it’s easy to want to choose what you think is the “right” answer instead of choosing the option for what you actually do. But for this question, I wasn’t even sure what I considered the “right” answer to be. At first thought, I’d say that it is absolutely best to make decisions with your head. Consider all the facts, do your due diligence to research all of your options, and then make the best, most logical decision. But how often does the “logical” approach accomplish anything truly fantastic?

Logic would say that taking 120 years to build a giant ark for an impending flood that no one believed would happen, was foolish, except it wasn’t. The flood came and Noah was safe.

Logic told Sarah that at 90 years of age she would never birth a child, but she did.

Logic told the King that Daniel would be eaten alive by the Lion’s in the den, but he came out unharmed.

Logic says that when Lazarus was dead and in the tomb for four days the story was tragically over, but it wasn’t.

Logic could have told the Wright brothers that they didn’t have the ability, knowledge, or resources to invent a flying machine, but they didn’t believe it, so they did.

Logic would have told Michael Jordan that his basketball career was over before it even started when he didn’t make his high school team, but he kept trying anyways.

You see, making decisions with your head, might be considered smart, but what if your “gut feeling” goes against all of the facts and figures? What if your heart tells you otherwise? What if you can’t shake the feeling that there might be a chance?

Most moms are quite familiar with the “gut feeling”. The doctor says your child is fine, but you know in your heart that he’s not. Your daughter brings home a new boyfriend that you’ve heard so many great things about, but for some reason, you can’t shake the uncomfortable feeling you have with him. Or you feel the need to take a different route to work one morning and later find out that there was a tragic accident at the exact time and the exact place that you usually travel. Sometimes our hearts do make better decisions than our heads.

I’m not saying that we should ignore all logic, common sense, conventional wisdom, or facts and figures. We should consider it all when making important decisions. But if your heart won’t stand up behind the logical decision, maybe faith is a better road.

Because logic and conventional wisdom don’t leave space for miracles. Facts and figures are great, but the power of a Living God isn’t bound by how the circumstances appear on paper.

Maybe I am more inclined to make decisions with my head instead of my heart, but I think I’ll challenge myself this year, to listen to my heart a little more. To open myself up to the possibility that my “heart” might be onto something. It might take a little more faith, it might take a little more time to look for confirmation for my heart’s nudges, but following my heart could lead exactly to the best life God has intended for me.

I think that sometimes, that still, small, voice of God shows up as a “gut feeling” or a whisper in our heart,and maybe the wise choice is to listen to Him and follow your heart.