Choose

This weekend I was drawn to Joshua 24:14-15.

NLT
"So fear the Lord and serve him wholeheartedly. Put away forever the idols your ancestors worshiped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord alone. But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods you ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord."

With my limited ability to give historical information, Joshua had called the leaders together as a final speech. It was suppose to challenge and encourage them to choose God. Joshua knew he was not going to live much longer and this was a chance to show how he stood in his faith.

A few things that spoke to my heart were:
"So fear the Lord and serve him wholeheartedly." Wholeheartedly...with everything in us, our entire heart, all of our emotions, above everything else, no matter what is going on in our lives. Those were the thoughts that went through my mind when I read that verse. Fear the Lord...it doesn't say fear the world, fear the opinion of your neighbor or a stranger, fear the future, fear if we will be "successful". Fear God. Wholeheartedly.

The message bible states the same verse as 14 "So now: Fear God. Worship him in total commitment." Total commitment. So does that mean I have to stop committing my time and energy to wondering if I am good enough for every one else? I am totally committing myself to that...not always worshiping Him in total commitment. Please forgive me Lord. My heart is divided. Total commitment.

"Put away forever the idols..." Forever...really? Forever is a long time. That means every morning I have to wake up to his new mercies committing my whole heart to put away any idol that I have...time, food, my self-image, my desire to please others. Forever.

"Serve the Lord alone." "Choose this day whom I will serve." Will I serve myself and the world or God. It is one or the other. Only God.

"But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve." He is saying don't go back and forth. Choose one and serve. Will it be God or the world. Choose.

"But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord." Joshua was making a bold statement and saying I don't care what you are doing, I am serving God and so is my family. That is the choice Joshua made. He wasn't going to serve the world or himself or his image, he was going to serve the Lord. Choose.

Fear the Lord.
Wholeheartedly.
Forever.
The Lord alone.
Choose.
Who will it be?

"Show me the right path, O Lord. Point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you." Psalm 25:4-5 Show me, lead me, teach me.

The minute I walk out my door the world surrounds me...people, choices, memories...tugging at my heart and blinding my vision...Lord I want to serve you wholeheartedly, forever. I want to serve you and serve you alone. Lord I choose you.

I am learning more and more each day that we can't go a day without commiting our hearts and minds to Him. I am learning to refocus, recommittment as my day goes on. One of the greatest defenses is the Word of God. By filling our minds with the truth, we can begin to fill our memory bank with the Sword of the Spirit. We are bombarded with lies all day. The lies might be imbedded in our hearts and minds and the familiar self defeating thoughts shoot out of our mouths without even thinking. I am learning to replace those with scripture. "Think on things that are true..."

It is not easy...but with God it is possible. I know we hear that all too often...the rahrah cheer..."with God all things are possible". Some times we hear that and we think "yeah right". That's what they all say. But it is in the bible. God said it. It is true. Hear it from God. Hear it from the one who created you and has great plans for you.

This scripture resonated in my heart all weekend...and today as I write about it, I know God is asking me to wholeheartedly serve him. He is saying forget about the worldly things that I fought and almost gave up my life to get. Where does my worth come from. God made me worthy when he created me. Nothing can change that. God made you worthy when he created you. Nothing can change that.

"Choose this day whom you will serve."

In love, Teresa