IT’S YOUR CHOICE

Somewhere—and many months (or years) ago—I ran across the following words of wisdom. They still seem appropriate.

“It wasn’t so difficult,” said the forty-ish woman who, by sticking to a rigid diet for many months, had dropped forty pounds and at least ten years. “Every time I was tempted to break my diet I just asked myself a question: ‘Which would I rather have: that piece of apple pie or a nice trim figure?’.”

It’s that way all through life. Making a sensible choice isn’t too difficult if we force ourselves to see that we are making a choice. Most of our mistakes happen because we failed to acknowledge that we were confronted by a choice, and simply made the wrong one.

People who neglect their health are actually choosing sickness over health. People who are painfully shy are actually choosing loneliness over companionship. People who are careless and slipshod are choosing disorder and confusion over order and sense. People who don’t develop their potentialities are choosing failure over success. And so on.

Anytime you are dissatisfied with yourself, or with your life, take a good clear look and see if you haven’t made a wrong choice—or, perhaps, more than one. This is at the root of your dissatisfactions.

Once you learn to see the choices that are yours, it’s much simpler to make a wise one. It’s failing to comprehend that you have a choice that gets you into trouble.

Good advice! And, it’s particularly true in the spiritual realm. Bad choices can prevent, or destroy, your relationship with an eternal God. There is no question it will affect your eternal destiny.

Jesus said, “I have come that they (that’s us) may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). The first choice everyone faces—that will lead to a full life both now and eternally—is whether they will give themselves to Jesus and follow him. A life devoted to Christ and to becoming more Christ-like day-by-day will, no doubt, make fewer bad choices. Dear God, please help us to see this and allow you to transform us.

In Christ, Lloyd