LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
Monday 11th October 2021
LIFE IS A CHOICE
Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 30:11-20
I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; Deuteronomy 30:19
Right from Adam in the Garden of Eden and throughout human history till the end of time, God requires humans to make choices. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had to decide whether to obey God or disobey Him. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus had to choose whether to complete His mission or abort it.
We cannot escape choices. Whether we want to or not, we have to make choices. Even neglecting to make a choice is a choice. God asked Moses to present two alternatives for the children of Israel to choose from.
They could either choose life and blessing or death and curses. The options the Lord offered to them were opposed to each other. One choice would lead to a favourable outcome and the other to a miserable end. If they chose one, they would forfeit the other.
Each day, God places the same options before us. Today, as we go about our chores and work through our ‘To Do’ list, we’re making choices that lead to beneficial consequences or those that will end with unwanted results.
Our choices have both eternal and earthly consequences. The Lord called heaven and earth to witness the options He placed before His people. That means both natural and spiritual laws recognise and react to our choices. What we do on earth determines how heaven responds to us.
Thankfully, the Lord did not leave His people to just make their choices on their own. He pointed them to the right course of action that would give them the best outcome. Similarly, God does not leave us to figure out which steps are right for us and which are wrong for us. The Lord wants us to do things that lead to life and blessing. To help us choose what is right, He has shared His thoughts with us through His written Word.
As we read the Bible, we expose our minds to God’s wisdom. The Bible presents us with compelling case studies of choices people have made in the past and their results. By learning from their example, whether good or bad, we see whether our deeds will result in God’s blessings or not.
In addition to the Bible, God has given us His Holy Spirit to nudge us in the right direction. The closer we are to God’s Spirit, the clearer His voice is to us. Let’s allow God’s word and God’s Spirit to order our steps each day.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, you have set life and death before me. Help me always to choose life through my actions. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
