Yesterday was a holiday and today is Beyoncè’s birthday. Alignment. Regardless, I’m baaaaack with a WORD! Let’s get it.
God has granted us free will meaning we do anything we want. We can run, jump, hop, skip and play. We can sleep, party, go to college and drop out. And we can do all of these things whenever we want, how often we want, where we want. God loves us so much that He lets us do whatever we want. But free will comes with great responsibility and consequences so we must choose wisely. I’m going to spend some time with this so stay with me.
Our lives are the direct result of the choices we make. We choose our own jobs, the clothes we wear, the car we drive, the friends we have, the food we eat, etc. We choose what religion we will practice, the shows we watch, the music and podcasts we listen to and the church we attend, if we go. Therefore, our lives are made of what we choose over and over again. We are what we constantly do.
Contentment in Christ
And it’s hard. When we think of everything God has given us, it’s easy to overlook free will but it’s one of the most important things we’ve been blessed with. God isn’t trying to control us. God truly wants us to be happy. We were put on earth to enjoy it. He wants us to have abundant lives. But we’ve been brainwashed to believe that abundance is outside of Him. We choose so many other things over God, neglecting the fact that everything we could possibly want and need is with Him. The things of this world pale in comparison to what God has to offer yet our choices rarely reflect that.
Looking at other people’s lives will not only get us caught up, it will have us living a life that God never intended for us in the first place which is why we must be careful what we let in, what we’re absorbing. That’s why social media and television has become so problematic. If you aren’t careful, it’ll have you chasing dreams that aren’t yours and glorifying ideals that you know are wrong. And maybe you don’t glorify them but you watch them and let them into your spirit making you complicit. All because you made a choice.
What We Choose is What We Become
Our choices dictate who we become. Our choices tell us who we are. We can talk all day but unless we put action behind our words it doesn’t matter. The work is what will carry us. Our choices are what dictate our future. Every choice we make plants a seed. The seeds we plant now are what will bloom in the coming years. What are you sowing? What do you want your harvest to look like? Are you choosing God?
I’m talking to myself. I don’t always choose God. I’m not always loving and giving and don’t get me started on obedience. I take advantage of grace and mercy over and over again and I don’t always operate from a place of faith. But God loves me so much He sends the Holy Spirit every time to remind me of whose I am and gets me right back on track. The goal is grace, not perfection. But I love God and I don’t want to take advantage of His gifts and waste my own. God is forgiving but I don’t want to stumble through life and not reap the harvest God intended for me.
Evolve Beyond Your Past
We have to evolve beyond who we used to be to become who we need to be. Our old way of thinking won’t get us to the promised land. We can’t keep doing the same thing over and over and come to God asking for a miracle. Since we’ve been set apart, we can’t dress and party like we used to. God can’t propel us forward if we haven’t grown or evolved from who we used to be. We must carry our cross and choose Christ daily. Personally, that’s where I get caught up. I’ll do good for a few days and then end up making a series of wrong choices (because five bad decisions are never enough. I need to make twenty to be sure) because not only have I not put God first, I’ve been leaning to my own understanding which is a sure fire way to fail. But I thank God for being God in spite of me, for ALWAYS gently pulling me back.
I love God and I want my life and choices to reflect that. I want the world to know through my thoughts, words, actions and deeds that my life is Christ driven. And that begins by choosing God over and over and over and over and over…
As always, take what you need and leave the rest.
