Choose Life

See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.

But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.

This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

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Although Moses was addressing the Israelites, I couldn’t help but think how this applies to all who believe. We all have a “Promise Land” to get to and, “Yes!” it matters how we get to it. We can choose to love the LORD…to walk in his ways…keep his commands and live, increase, and be blessed once we reach our destination or we can choose disobedience…distractions which cause many to make “things” an idol and more important than the work God has set before us or more important than God himself. If we choose the latter, we may get to where we are going, but it won’t last long. It will be short lived and eventually destroyed leaving one to start all over again. But, isn’t that the beauty of knowing Jesus. His mercies are new every morning and He is a God of second chances. He longs for us to get it right…to choose life, listen to his voice, and hold fast to Him.