LIFE'S ABOUT CHOICES

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not up in Heaven, so that you have to ask, ‘Who will ascend into Heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?’ Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?’ No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.”

“See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.”

“But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.”

“This day I call Heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life, and He will give you many years in the land He swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

Deuteronomy 30:11-20

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we walk through each day that God has blessed us with, one thing is certain.

We will have to make a choice or choices.

Some might be easy…some might be hard…some are just routine…but nonetheless, we are faced with having to decide on things over and over and over…and the Lord expects us to make the right calls every time we do. We see this clearly in our passage for today, the closing verses of Deuteronomy, chapter 30.

So how do we know what we should do in life? What do we have at our disposal to help us make proper choices?

Well, we can start with God’s Word, a Word He has breathed out for us (2 Timothy 3:16), a Word that isn’t “too difficult for (us) or beyond (our) reach”. In fact, we read where it is “very near (to us)…in (our) mouth and…heart so (we) may obey it”, just as it was for the ancient Israelites.

Indeed, we don’t need to reach too far to find God’s Word or what he expects us to do. He makes it easily accessible for anyone. We also don’t have to look far for His Spirit for it is ever within us, ever ready to counsel and guide us in the ways of righteousness.

This powerful Holy Spirit translates, illuminates, and spotlights the scriptures, bringing discernment and understanding to the reader so they might apply it to their lives in a way that brings the Lord’s Word to life.

In other words, a Living God gives us a Living Word and counsels us through a Living Spirit, which we have available to us 24/7, 365 days a year. Thanks be to God that we’re never in a place where we don’t have the Lord with us to help us always make the right choices.

Today, the Lord sets before us ”life and prosperity, death and destruction”, just as He did the people of Israel and it’s really up to us as to which we will experience.

If we follow God’s order to “love (Him)…walk in His ways…and…keep his commands, decrees and laws”, then we are assured we will “live and increase”…blessed wherever we are. For Israel, this was going to be the land of Canaan…the “land (they were) entering to possess”.

But if our hearts turn away from God…if we choose disobedience and “are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them” (other gods being anything else that we would give our devotion to outside of God and Him alone)…then we will face judgment and destruction.

In the end translation, the choice as to how things play out is on us because life is all about choices. My prayer is that we would fulfill God’s hope in the last paragraph of our passage and “choose life”…which means we will choose to live in obedience and reverence before our Lord, who has given us His Word and Spirit to ensure all choices we make in life are choices that would find His approval. If we do this, then we and our children may live in peace and hope and, most of all, truth as we love the Lord by listening to His voice and holding fast to Him and His Word.

Do yourself a favor and make sure you make the right choice.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.