choice...

choose... decide... make up your mind... resolve and settle it once and for all
we have been given a wonderful tool - a 'decider'. we can use it for all sorts of situations and circumstances in our lives.


will we have another piece of chocolate... will we sell our belongings and go to the other side of the world to help AIDs orphans. and all sorts of inbetweens.


the other day, after reading a comment from a friend, i got to thinking about a passage in the Old Testament - actually, two passages - and only a snippet from each. they both speak of choice. they speak of life... and who we will serve.

then, a third passage followed hard on the heels of the first two - this one in the New Testament. about not living as others have dictated.


"... I have set before you life and death... choose life that you may live" - there is a quality of living we are given the opportunity to choose.

"... choose who you will serve..." - there is servitude involved in our choice.

"... do not be conformed..." - that tells me i can make a choice as to whether i will shape myself to someone else's demands.

we can choose - i choose life. we can choose to not be in servitude to that which binds, and stifles, and controls - i choose life. we can choose not to be conformed to their patterns - i choose life.

we can choose, decide, make up our minds to be bent and pushed and shaped into someone's mold. if we do, in my seeing and experience, we have chosen death. we have chosen to serve that person/thing/institution, etc, in the fashion of their choosing. and that results in death to whom we are meant to be.

even if we have chosen that which brings death and servitude and conforming - we can choose again - for life. and in the very choosing, we will begin to be set free - transformed - renewed. in our minds - in our walks - in our lives.

and we will find that good, acceptable, perfect desire for us. we will find and know His desire for us - we will find, and walk in - that person He desires us to be.