What’s a time you followed your gut and it turned out to be exactly right?
The saying that the gut is the “second brain” is scientifically backed. While it cannot write poetry or balance a checkbook, the gut-brain network is fascinating—it produces a large quantity of the body’s serotonin, the “happiness” chemical, and about half of its dopamine, which may significantly affect states of mind. In other words, your gut may influence your moods, drive impulsive decisions, or even change the course of your life.
This prompt can play out in countless scenarios: buying a lottery ticket after dreaming of a win, selling stocks just before a crash, or canceling a trip because something feels off.
But when it comes to important—or even life-or-death—matters, gut-based decisions can backfire. Choices that require the call of the heart—here meaning the discernment of ultimate truth, not fleeting emotion—might include deciding one’s beliefs based on lived experience, marrying someone out of love and a shared history, or turning down a promising job to stay home with children after careful deliberation.
I am not someone who clings to gut feelings. Still, I do occasionally bring—or leave behind—an umbrella based on a hunch, or walk into a busy restaurant without a reservation because I sense a table will open up. My gut has served me well from time to time. But I don’t let it drive my important decisions. Those are grounded in facts, circumstances, and above all, the will of the Lord Jesus Christ—whom I believe embodies that ultimate truth. When I follow that path, I find I do not grieve over outcomes that fall short of my expectations.
I believe that winning brings momentary joy, but losing is often the ultimate catalyst for growth. I have lived long enough to testify that setbacks build resilience, forge mental toughness, and teach the valuable lessons we need to widen our perspective—so we can choose something higher and deeper than what our guts alone would suggest.
But what about those who wander around their guts, mistaking impulse for insight? May my poem shed light on the search for wisdom and true wealth—a wealth that far transcends what our guts alone could ever reveal.
—
✨ Decoding Fate ✨
Fate’s cipher turns on wisdom’s key—
The wise see wealth and poverty
With eyes unclouded, clear and free.
But fools are drawn to twisted delight,
To love what’s wrong, to shun what’s right.
Few ride the wind; most walk against the light.
Yet Love still calls—”Come home, return!”—
The prodigal may still unlearn
His wandering ways, his bridges burn.
But when the spirit fades and flees,
And souls dissolve like autumn leaves,
No path remains for turning back—
Only the silence, deep and black.
—
en yan hua fang 