Mensa Otabil - Making the Right Choice
- Watch
- Donate
This week, we’ve been looking at choices and various aspects of choices: the road we should walk on, the road we should not walk on, who holds the key, and that life is a choice. Today, we’re going to look at some practical aspects of making choices.
Psalm 119, verse 30: «I have chosen the way of Truth; Your judgments I have laid before me.» The choices we make in life are ours. Once in a while, other people choose for us if we ask them to, but mostly we make our own choices. Each one of us has the burden of intentionally doing the things that will get us the right results, because sometimes we may have a desire, but the choices we make are totally opposite to the desires we have. It’s important that our desires are aligned with the actions we take. So whether we are serving God as pastors, or we are members of a church, or we are just Christians, all of us must intentionally seek to do the will of God. Here are some guidelines I’m providing for us to make choices-five of them for today.
One, we must choose based on godliness. Godliness has to do with God’s character. That’s where we start. The basis for making a choice should always be godliness or Godly values. God looks at the heart; He doesn’t look at the outward appearances. He doesn’t just look at beauty and stature; He looks within. So for whatever decision you’re making, don’t just look at the surface and make the decision. In other words, if you’re going to marry, you don’t just look at somebody and say, «I like him» or «I like her» and marry her. All this business looks good; I’m going to do it. People are making money doing this; I’m going to do it. We have to look beyond; we have to be like God, not looking at the outside but taking interest in what is within.
Secondly, we must choose to work towards our desires. Work is not a curse, and we must be very careful about anything that promises us results without work. Apart from our salvation, which is freely given to us because of the work Christ has done, everything else we receive in life requires some effort on our part. So, we shouldn’t be looking for free things or seeking results without putting in energy. That’s not how it works; we have to work for it. We must put in a lot of effort. God gave Israel a promised land and called it " the land flowing with milk and honey,» but guess what? In the promised land, nothing flowed; they had to plant. Even the manna which they were receiving freely in the wilderness ceased in the promised land, and they had to work in the land of promise. This means that for the promises of God to become real in our lives, a lot of work has to be put in.
We must choose based on godliness, we must choose to work, and we must choose to go the full distance of our journey. When we start a journey, we don’t quit; we don’t stop along the way. We don’t say, «Oh, I’ve seen it all; I’m tired. I tried it, and it’s difficult.» No, because on the journey we have chosen-if it’s the narrow gate and the narrow way-there will be difficulty, setbacks, and disappointments. There will be negativity; people will fight us, people will resist us. But we stay on track and don’t quit if we are doing the will of God.
We have to choose to magnify God in all that we do, because everything we do in life must ultimately honor the Lord. We must choose that Christ be at the center of everything that we do with our lives. These are practical guides that will help us when we are faced with a choice to determine which one is good for us and which one is not. I hope that you’ve been helped, and I will continue this tomorrow, and I think that you will gain insights that will practically help you with your Christian life.
Let’s pray. Say with me: «Heavenly Father, You reward those who diligently seek You. Magnify Yourself in my life. In Jesus' name, amen.»