STUDY CONSEQUENCES

Reference text: 1 Samuel 8: 4-7,10-22

Patients have the right to be told all there is to know about any planned clinical interventions including all the benefits, associated risks, and alternative options available. As an example, coronary angiography is useful to diagnose and treat significant narrowings in the arteries that supply blood to the heart. So the benefit, is clear. However, risks include vascular puncture, stroke, risk of perforations, contrast leaks, cardiac arrest, and even death.

Despite all efforts, they made it clear to Samuel to make them a king and God complied. The role of counsellors, teachers or fixed boundaries such as the word of God are intended to guide us to the point of thoroughly appreciating the weight of decisions. So the statement “study consequences” by Dr Myles Munroe comes to mind.

In many instances, you will wish as a patient that the list of benefits outweighed the risks, however in many instances, the reverse is true where to achieve one benefit, you have to navigate significant risk. In speaking to Israel, God ensured to reveal all the implications and repercussions that came with having a king. This was a tall list captured across verses 11-18. As with risk-benefit, the benefits of having a king was captured in only one verse.

Israel seemed not to care about consequences, they only sought to become like the other nations around them. Your singular focus on immediate gains can blind you to the costly repercussions that follow the decisions you make.

#sly