I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants…<\/i> Deuteronomy 30:19<\/p>\n
I taught in elementary and middle schools for over thirty years. And every year\u2014make that almost every day<\/i>\u2014someone thought they needed to test the boundaries. Maybe she\u2019s moved the line. Maybe she\u2019ll just give in. Maybe she didn\u2019t mean it.<\/i> They had that urge to test the limits; they were just checking.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, God\u2019s people aren\u2019t much different than a lot of the kids I taught. I\u2019ll bet thoughts like some of the following have crossed your<\/em> mind at least once since you began your walk with the Lord:<\/p>\n In the Old Testament, the Lord God said through Moses that He had set a choice before His people\u2014life or death; blessing or the curse. The route they took was entirely up to them. The rewards\u2014and consequences\u2014that manifested in their lives would likewise play out according to the decisions they made\u2014life or death; blessing or cursing.<\/p>\n But the Lord didn\u2019t stop there. He told them the proper choice to make at every junction before them\u2014life<\/i>. Life <\/i>is always<\/em> the appropriate choice to make. Life and blessing are always<\/i> available to every one of us; they are always<\/i> a decision away\u2014even when the alternatives seem more appealing or less challenging.<\/p>\n Notice what the Lord said through Moses: So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants…<\/i><\/p>\n Your decisions are your own. However, those decisions impact everyone else around you, extending for generations. Even as a single woman without children, I am keenly aware that my choices effect far more than myself. My choices and yours\u2014as insignificant as they may seem in the grand scheme of things\u2014carry far more weight on the scales of eternity than we can even imagine.<\/p>\n So how do you choose life? The Lord continued as He spoke through Moses: \u201c\u2026by loving the <\/i>Lord<\/i> your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the <\/i>Lord<\/i> swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them<\/i>\u201d (Deuteronomy 30:20).<\/p>\n How do<\/i> you choose life?<\/p>\n The pattern was set from the beginning. The boundaries were drawn. Blessing and life have always been wrapped up in one key pursuit: connection with God.<\/p>\n Connection is established when you love Him. Connection is established when you obey His voice. Connection is established when you hold fast to Him.<\/p>\n So how loose is tight enough? When speaking in reference to the One who died an excruciating death to bridge the gap of separation between you and God, looseness of connection emerges as an impoverished choice\u2014a choice attended by things pertaining to death and the curse.<\/p>\n Connection to the One who loves you is as uncomplicated as loving Him, as straightforward as obeying His voice, and as raw as holding fast to Him. The simplest person on earth can connect with Him to the uttermost; the most learned and astute among us discover that they barely scratch the surface of His limitless love as they draw near to Him in close connection.<\/p>\n Connection to the One who loves you is available to you in full measure. Love Him, obey Him, hold fast to Him. Anything less is depriving yourself of the best Life has to offer.<\/p>\n Dorothy<\/p>\n Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”<\/em> John 14:6 <\/p>\n\n
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