For all these reasons, and more, one should never guess at or decide on one’s own how to behave in challenging moments of uncertainty. Rather, take advantage of the Torah guides we are blessed with.
A person who really wants to live according to Torah should make the effort to find a rav who understands him and who will guide him in the right direction. Some people, however, are looking for something else entirely. If all you want is to get a “stamp of approval” for whatever it is you want to do, you might be tempted to find a different rav each time to provide the answer you’re looking for.
Consistency is part and parcel of serving Hashem. Chazal teach us: “This is the yetzer hara’s way; Today he tells you: Do this and tomorrow he tells you: Do that, until he tells you: Go serve avodah zarah.” I once saw a beautiful explanation of this which sheds a lot of light on how our minds can work.
One day, the yetzer hara can come to a person and say: Do lots of chessed! It’s such a wonderful thing! And the person takes up the idea enthusiastically. The next morning, the yetzer hara wakes him up with a new thought: Chessed? That’s for askanim. You should be learning! So he goes off to the beis medrash to learn. The next day, the yetzer hara turns up with a new brainwave: Learning? That’s great, but the real avodah is to daven properly. And so it goes on, until the person just gives up on everything.
While people usually believe they’re trying to do what’s “right,” they don't usually realize (or admit to themselves) that all they are doing is what they want and justifying it separately each time. I think the same can be said about someone who goes hopping from rav to rav, until he decides to just drop the whole thing and do whatever he fancies.
