“There is a way that appears to be right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.”  Proverbs 14:12

Once, I tried assembling a lawnmower without reading the directions. I figured it couldn’t be that difficult, so I proceeded on my own. When I finished, it started right up, but when I shifted to forward, it went backward. What seemed right to me was wrong.

Proverbs warns us that sometimes what seems right to us leads to disaster. This is especially true regarding our attempts to reach God. People have tried in many ways to bridge the gap between themselves and God.

God didn’t create us as robots to love and obey Him. He gave us a will and freedom of choice. We have chosen to disobey God and go our own willful way. The result is separation from God.

I recently attended a funeral and listened to how people get into heaven through good works, religion philosophy and morality. But all those ideas are wrong. No bridge reaches God except one.

Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave, paying the penalty for our sin and bridging the gap between God and people. There is only one way and we must make a choice by trusting Jesus as Lord and Savior.

We must admit our need, by confessing that we are a sinner and be willing to repent and turn from our wicked ways. We must believe that Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave. Then through we can invite Him in as Lord and Savior. Only that way is the right way to reach God.

THOUGHT: Ask yourself if you have made this decision and confession or are you playing church. Have you invited Jesus into your heart?

Lord, I am a sinner and I repent of my sins. I believe that Jesus died for my sins and rose from the grave. I invite Him to come in and control my life through the Holy Spirit and I receive Him as Lord and Savior.

By John Grant
used by permission

John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney.

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The post The Wrong Way appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“My God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 4:19

On major highways in the United States there are large signs before exits that lead to nearby cities and towns. On these signs are listed conveniences for the travelers such as gas/petrol stations, hotels, restaurants, etc. But while driving through more rural areas, occasionally one of these signs will have only two words: NO SERVICES. This is to inform travelers that at this exit there are no nearby businesses to satisfy a traveler’s needs. Drivers are free to leave the highway at these points, but they will find only fields, the occasional house or farm and less-maintained roads. There will be no resources to meet basic human needs.

As we travel down the roads of our lives, we are faced with choices similar to those facing drivers on U.S highways. God has promised to provide resources for all our needs but He allows us to make the choices. We are free to investigate all the possibilities, but frequently we turn off God’s best paths only to find that there are, ‘no services‘ at these points.  In the Bible, God gives us all the information we need to make good choices; He asks only that we seek the answers.

God, thank you for providing all I need for living in such a way that you are pleased. Help me never forget how much you love and supply my needs.

By Marilyn Ehle
used by permission

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“’Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?’ . . . Jesus replied, ‘If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.’…. ‘All these I have kept,’ the young man said. ‘What do I still lack?’ Jesus answered, ‘If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’”Matthew 19:16-22

Have you ever been asked to relinquish something you treasured dearly? As a youngster, immigrating to Canada, I had the unavoidable task of choosing what personal possessions to leave behind. Our family’s belongings had to fit a small shipping. Reluctantly and agonizingly, I confronted the crucible of choice — selecting, surrendering, and submitting to this unsolicited predicament.

In Matthew 19, Jesus encounters a man inquiring about eternal life. On the surface, the man’s reply indicates that he has met the criteria for righteousness, but Jesus discerns that the man’s possessions are an obstacle preventing him from fully following Him. So Jesus asks him to surrender the obstacle.

Jesus doesn’t plea bargain for the man’s heart because He knows that “… where [his] treasure is, there [his] heart will be also.” In a life-changing moment, the man confronts the crucible of choice — assessing the value of his possessions. Regrettably, he concludes that his possessions are non-negotiable and he rejects Jesus’ proposal.

Are you willing to relinquish anything preventing you from experiencing deeper intimacy with Jesus? Ideally, as Christ followers, we should surrender anything that hinders relational intimacy with God. Daily, every believer must confront the crucible of choice, and re-evaluate his or her treasures. Jesus knows surrender and submission are heart conditions and decisions. They are the unavoidable and non-negotiable cost of fully following Jesus.

Lord, create in me a transparent heart. Help me to reevaluate my heart’s treasures — discerning if there is anything in my life that hinders relational intimacy with you. Empower me with the resolve to choose wisely when I confront choice and to daily surrender my heart to your word and will. Amen.

By Allan Mitchell
Used by Permission

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I read a devotion the other day on trusting God through the fog, the writer recounting a difficult drive down a foggy mountain road and trusting God to take her safely home.

I have not had that experience of driving down a foggy mountain road. And yet, recently…I created my own fog on a bright sunny day.

Nothing had changed. A blinding fog did not roll in and obscure my view. I just took my eyes off what God can do and let circumstances overwhelm me with doubt and fear. I was not a friend to myself. I was a saboteur of my own journey.

For a while I let a thick fog swirl around me and swallow up my hope and faith and pull me into a dark place where discouragement filled my heart.

We all have those days when praying, waiting, and working toward something are met with discouragement. We often find we derail our confidence in the Lord with our own weakness and wrong thinking because for a while we take our eyes off of Him and instead let a fog of doubt and worry surround us. The fog comes rolling in when I take my eyes off of the Lord.

It is a miserable place to be when we feel like we have lost our way and can’t find a clear solution.

There are multiple possibilities for our discouragement. Here are just a few:

• We become impatient because we have already waited a very long time for answers.
• We might convince ourselves we have asked for too much or too big and back down from our asking.
• We don’t see any signs of change in our difficult situation and hopelessness leads to great frustration.
• Our task looks too complicated to complete and we feel like giving up.

We will all go through discouragement when faced with the above type scenarios. But will we let discouragement rule our lives, or will we place our trust in God to work those things that we can’t comprehend? Will we remind ourselves how He has worked for our good in other difficult times?

When I realized that all the negativity I was experiencing was a product of my own doing and that my reasons for discouragement were based on feelings and emotions run amuck, the fog began to lift and clear thinking prevailed. I stood my ground with faith and trust and let the sun break through all the fog.

When my self-imposed fog lifted and I experienced the fresh air of hope and faith once more, I truly felt a wave of energy surge through my body, heart and soul. God’s indwelling spirit renewed me and I welcomed His faithfulness to me as His strength overcame my weakness and I felt strong and whole. The sky was blue again, the sun was shining and all fog had lifted away.

Isaiah 40:31”But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint.”

By Kathy Cheek
Used by Permission

www.kathycheek.com

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“And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD“”  Joshua 24:15

I was touring through a school, being shown around by the principal when a poster on the wall caught my eye.

You are not born a winner, You are not born a loser, You are born a chooser!

It really got my attention and I thought what a great message for students’. No a great reminder for everyone. Life is full of choices. Every day brings new challenges and decisions for you and me and everyone around us. Every day is a new day, and every day means we either choose to live for God, by the standards He lays down in the Holy Bible, or we live for ourselves by our own standards of right and wrong, as in the days when, “. . . every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25).

We are free to make choices and we have to live with the consequences of those choices. Whether it is the career we select or the mate we choose or what we order from a menu. We experience the consequences of our choices.

I thought of this question: How does the Christian learn to make right choices and live in the center of God’s will every day? These choices are not new. The people of Joshua’s time had to make choices as they took the promised land, but they made a choice, the right choice, declaring “but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD”

Too many people today want to have a foot on each side of the fence. They want the path to heaven but want it to wander through the streets of the world.

Jesus said:
“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (money)” (Matthew 6:24).

So remember that the choices are yours and may we all decide we and our house will serve the LORD. Think about it. It’s your choice!

By John Grant
used by permission
John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

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“My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.” James 1:19-21

There’s an old fable about a Cherokee Indian elder who was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, ‘A fight is going on inside you. It is a terrible fight between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight going on inside of you is inside every other person, too.’

The children thought about it for a minute, and then one child asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”

The old Cherokee elder replied simply, “The one you feed.”

A Rabbi expressed it this way: “The two wolves symbolize the Evil Inclination (Yetzer Hora) and the Good Inclination (Yetzer Hatov). The former thrives on bodily appetites, while the latter thrives on Torah, prayer, and good deeds. Eventually, one swallows the other.”

Paul talked about in his letter to the Galatians, telling them to live by the Spirit, and not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. He said the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature.

In case the Galatians didn’t know how to identify these traits, Paul spelled them out: sexual immorality, impurity debauchery, idolatry witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions envy, drunkenness, orgies, and the like. And then he went on to enumerate the fruits of the Spirit which are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Reading this causes me to take inventory of my inner self. Clearly, I can see the two wolves within me. Clearly they are in competition. Clearly, on my own I have not the ability to triumph good over evil from within. But the wonderful part of the story is that through the Spirit of Christ, I can overcome all things and I can be the kind of person God uniquely created me to be. I can be all things through Christ who strengthens me.

So, I encourage you to do as I did. Take an inner inventory. Decide who you want to be and who God wants you to be. And, above all else, make sure each day that you take time to feed the right wolf.

Question: Which wolf are you feeding today?

by John Grant
used by permission

John Grant is a former Florida State Senator and is a practicing attorney

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The post Which Wolf are you Feeding? appeared first on Thoughts About God.

Your feet hit the deck running this morning with lots on your schedule. As you walk out the rhythm of your steps ask yourself this question…

“Does this path I am walking today lead me to a place I want to go?” Oh, I don’t mean the steps you take to work or to your next appointment… but this direction you’re on in your life. Will it take you to where you want to be next week and next year?

The choices we make today will determine where we are tomorrow.

The same principle applies to our thoughts and our attitudes. Do a check on the primary thoughts and attitudes parading through your mind these days. If you keep thinking those thoughts or carrying that attitude, will you end up where you want to be in life and in a particular relationship?

Our daily choices of where we walk, what thoughts we entertain, and the attitudes we allow to simmer will affect our lives and relationships in profound ways.

A wise Proverb from God’s holy word says,

“A person with good sense gives thought to his ways.” (Proverbs 14:8)

Take a moment to consider… “Will the choices I am making today take me to where I want to be tomorrow?”

Lord God, Please inspire my choices today with the power of the Holy Spirit. Help me to be wise in the direction I am I going. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.

Inspired by the book “The Rest of God” Chapter 2 by Mark Buchanan.

Question: Where are the choices you have been making leading you? Closer to God and His will, or father away?

by Gail Rodgers
used by permission

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The post Am I Headed in the Direction I Want to Go? appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the Lord as he did — with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength…” 2 Kings 23:25a

Have you ever met someone that amazed you?

Josiah was someone who has amazed me. He lived in dark days. His evil father was assassinated, so Josiah was made king when idolatry was prominent throughout the land. He didn’t have a godly example to follow, and the world around him was facing judgment. He relied on God to direct him.

During his reign, Josiah got rid of idols. He implemented a Passover Celebration to honor God. He was a whole-hearted follower of God who made a difference.

We all have a choice at how we view life. Focusing on all that is going wrong in our world can be defeating. Sometimes in the darkness, it can be difficult to see what God is doing. Things can look bleak with the pandemic and the disunity currently existing throughout our world.

When we feel disheartened, do we look inward or upward? We can choose to be like Josiah, who decided to turn to the Lord. If we truly believe in the Lord with all of our heart and all of our soul and all of our strength, then we can choose to change our focus from the day’s troubles and instead remember the blessings. God is doing a work in these dark times, and he is looking for men and women who will follow him.

Lord God, help me to trust in you with all of my heart, soul, and strength. When the world around seems full of evil, help me to remember the blessings that you have given. Amen.

By Jan Stewart
Used by Permission

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The post Living Beyond the Darkness appeared first on Thoughts About God.

“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 19:21 (NIV)

Where shall we go today? To far-off lands of intrigue? To clear blue lakes? To lovely mountaintop vistas?

How can we get there? We arrive at our destination by the daily choices we make.

We all make good decisions. And on occasion, we also make bad ones. But, if we’re smart, we choose to make good ones because we want the good results. I know I do.

With all the choices that pop up like a whack-a-mole game every day, each opportunity of choosing will take me on a journey – a journey either to walk in submission to God’s will or to walk in disobedience. Each preference will have its own path with its own outcome.

I can choose to take the path of self-destruction or self-preservation. I can fill my thoughts with negative thoughts. I can choose to tear others down. I can choose to get even with the one who stabbed me in the back. I can choose to be hateful to my spouse for whatever reason.

Or…I can choose to do the opposite: to be positive and kind, to be forgiving and loving.

Whether it’s a decision about my finances, my physical well-being, my relationships, or whatever, I have the opportunity to make a choice. It’s my decision. And ultimately, my journey of outcome.

What’s your decision path look like lately?

…feeling alone? …on the brink? …dashed dreams? …lost? …rejoicing? …at peace? …in God’s Light?

What does God say about His plan? “I know the plans I have in mind for you…they are plans for peace, not disaster, to give you a future filled with hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (CEB)

Is your journey of choice one that agrees with God’s choice, or is it one of your own making? What are the results of your daily decisions?

~Prayer: Lord, I know Your plans for me are more excellent than anything I can devise. They are for my good and my benefit. Help me to remember to consult You with each choice that confronts me every day. May my choices bring honor and glory to Your name. Amen.

By Lynn Mosher
Used by Permission

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Choices – by John Grant

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    For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  Romans 3:23

We’ve all had them and the older we get, the more they pile up. They are the regrets for the wrong decisions we have made. Often, they have brought lasting and painful consequences. Some were recent and some from a long time ago. Some may be family and social, some relationships and some financial. Some bring shame and guilt.

But remember, you are not alone. We all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We all have made decisions we wish we had never made. Remember that God has a plan for forgiveness and restoration. Often the consequences of our wrong decisions will linger, maybe for a lifetime. But forgiveness and restoration is now.

Talk to God openly about your weaknesses, failures and mistakes. Repent of any wrongdoing. Repentance means you’re sincerely sorry and you want to make a change.

Overcoming shame and guilt is possible with Christ’s help. He has paid the price for our sins, even the worst sins that cause us to feel guilt and shame. 1 John 1:9 says when we confess our sins, he forgives us and purifies us. This means we do not need to let shame and guilt control us. Shame and guilt are tools of Satan!

Finding compassion and contentment in life is an inside job. No one else can give these things to you. Worrying is like paying interest on a debt that never comes due. It is never too late to be all that we can be. We can live in the darkness or fight our way into the light.

We have all traded what really matters for something that doesn’t really matter. We are defined by our choices.

Regret can draw us to salvation. Paul tells us that “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation” (2 Corinthians 7:10) and that it is God’s kindness that brings us to repentance (Romans 2:4).

Regret is sorrow or remorse over something that has happened or that we have done. Regret can also be a sense of disappointment over what has not happened, such as regretting wasted years. To be human is to have regrets because making mistakes is a universal experience.

The Bible gives much instruction that, if followed, will result in fewer regrets. God’s commands and boundaries are written down for us in His Word, and the more we adhere to them, the less we have to regret. However, in God’s grace and mercy, He has also provided a way to deal with regrets when we have not lived as wisely as He wants us to.

Bring your regrets to God and He will lead you to a path of joy.

by John Grant
used by permission

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For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

When our feet hit the floor each morning we have a choice.

The world’s way—do this, go here, be this, seek these things. Or God’s way—be who God created you to be, honor God, follow God, build your life on Him.

And we see people everywhere, near and far, dreaming dreams they hope will be fulfilled by following the temporary, transient ways to which the world calls them. Hoping to reach whatever those dreams may be, climbing ladders seeking after success and fulfillment conforming to the ways of the world.

Worldly dreams seeking after wins, money, success, stuff, image, acceptance by and meeting the expectations of the world. Realizing when they reach the top of the ladders they’re climbing—it’s not there. Rather than seeking after dreams aligned with the God who created them.

Submitting to the God who walks with them. Remembering that He is God of it all—everywhere as far as we can see and be.

So, where will we find the dreams, God created us to dream, and is always pointing us toward? Maybe starting here as you seek to embrace the dreams God places in your heart—

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Remembering as your feet hit the floor each morning, this reminder from God—

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

And throughout the journey of each day, to be empowered by believing that the God of all creation is there above it all, guiding your life of obedience to Him, with this sacred and eternal promise—

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Following the dreams God has implanted in your heart and mine, to be who He created us to be, not someone we are not. Following our dreams with God always alongside, always out-front, behind, above, and even carrying us when we need a lift up, to climb over and beyond whatever is before us, as we search, follow, find, and embrace our God-inspired dreams.

Like the words of this beautiful hymn, “Climb Every Mountain,” from “The Sound of Music” remind us:

Climb every mountain, search high and low, follow every byway, every path you know. Climb every mountain, ford every stream, follow every rainbow, till you find your dream. A dream that will need all the love you can give, every day of your life, for as long as you live.

Climb every mountain, ford every stream, follow every rainbow, till you find your dream.”

When our feet hit the floor each morning—follow God’s way. The God who created you and me, and always knows who we are.

Follow God’s dreams for your life. As I follow them for my life. Till we find our dreams. Scott Whitaker

by John Grant
used b permission

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• Lost Dreams
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Homepage of the  Devotionals

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“You have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” 1 Peter 1:23 (NIV)

We are free either to love God or not.

He invites us to love Him.  He urges us to love Him.  He came that we might love Him.  But, in the end, the choice is yours and mine.  To take that choice from each of us, for Him to force us to love Him, would be less than love….

He leaves the choice to us.

By Max Lucado
Used by permission
From: Everyday Blessings

To learn more about Max Lucado visit his website at:
https://maxlucado.com/about/

FURTHER READING

• Where Your Choices Can Lead You – The Frank Krause Story

• Choices – by John Grant

• Journey of Choice –  by Lynn Mosher

The post Choices appeared first on Thoughts About God.