A little boy around four years old sees a electrical outlet in his family’s living room. Before his tiny fingers can touch the electrical outlet or it’s plug the little boy hears his father’s firm warning tell him, “No, son, no.”
The father then rushes over in a hurry to pick his son up and move him to the middle of the room safely. The little boy moves his way back to the outlet, when his father placed him on the floor while his father’s back was turned.
The father turns again to see what his son was doing. When he sees his son back reaching for the outlet again the father loudly warns him. He says, “Stop son, don’t touch”
The little boy may or may not realizes he has a decision to make. He has a choice to listen to the voice of his loving father or disregard his father’s warning and procede with his action.
He takes a step back from the outlet. His attention immediately switches to the toys on the floor. He soon forgets the outlet which had his complete attention. He has decided to respond to his father’s voice instead of the false thoughts in his mind
about touching the outlet.
The choice has been decided and exercised by the little boy without him really understanding the full consequences of what almost took place. For now this was the choice that he learned and obeyed his father’s voice even when he could not see why?
The father wanted to protect his son from undue harm. Although it seemed small, this lesson had a huge impact on his life. The little boy will come to learn that listening to his parents will help him make better decisions to survive life.
Our choices are much the same with our relationship with God. God loves us so much that he has allowed us to have freewill to choose for ourselves. Gods’ love is unconditional, but our choices have consequences and have conditions.
God has made us promises but his promises have conditional answers based on us and our selections. When we choose Him and His ways related to his Son Jesus Christ we will be blessed. When we do not we will be punished.
In Genesis we see how God created us to have the power of choosing. The power of selecting is one of the ways we are created in Gods’ image. “And the Lord God commanded the man saying, of every tree of the garden you may freely eat,” Genesis 2:16.
Adam and Eve were created and given the power to choose many many things but one. “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat for
in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die,” Genesis 2:17.
God commanded Adam and Eve to select anything they desired because nothing was wrong but one thing. Before sin came into Gods’ world only one thing they where not to do. All the other things they could eat and do, only not to eat from the tree of knowledge of Good and evil.
Exercising choices all started with God giving Adam and Eve that command. The command of blessing or cursing, if they obeyed they got blessed, if they disobeyed they were cursed.
It was completely their choice. In Genesis 4:1-16 there is a story about two brothers selecting how to worship God. Cain and Abel were there names. Cain chose to offer God what he grew from his garden. Abel however offered God a animal from his flock with a sacrifice by shedding it’s blood.
Why was God pleased with Abel and not Cain? Well it was because of the sin that had to be dealt with. God honored Abel’s sacrifice because it pointed to Christ’s death, burial, and ressurrection. Hebrews 9:22 says, “…. without shedding of
blood is no remission (forgiveness).”
Three words that I suggest that you and I or anyone can use to be victorious over sin’s grip, is to know, consider, and present, which is found in Romans 6: 6,11,&13. First if we would know who we are through Christ and examine ourself. Second we must consider if it is the truth and is right. Thirdly we must present our body and lives to be used by God and his glory.
Romans 6:6,11,13
- Know – v6, 9
- Consider – v6, 9
- Present (Yield) – v11
All action begans with making a choice in your mind. Knowing who you are (a Christian) will always help you make the right choice. Know who you are? Right choices come from knowing your origin spiritually.
Knowing the scriptures is one powerful factor in making choices. Most people don’t know their bible reminds me of the Sunday school teacher that asked, “What are Epistles?” The student answered, “I guess they are the wives of the Apostles.”
When bad thoughts come, we have two choices. We can reject them or we can accept them and make them a part of our life. We have the power at that point given to us by God to choose.
Learning to choice takes time and practice much like exercise. Exercising physically is much the same way spiritually. Practicing the use of discernment to know right from wrong in the sight of God requires being born again.
Take a close look at the choices you are making. In the choices you are making is there a regular track record to indicate that you are trusting God? Does it show anywhere in your past that you have trusted Christ as your Saviour?
Well if not, today is a good day to trust Him for your sins.
Do you believe that Christs’ work on the cross is all anyone has to do to be saved from sin? It comes down to making a committed choice about Christ. Think about your choices if they don’t include what Christ thinks or feels then, there is a problem with your relationship with Him.
Just maybe you are not His. If you are not forgiven of your sin then you are not right with God. How do you do this you might ask? By agreeing with God that Christs’ death, burial and ressurrection on the cross was for you.
The choices we have made, have a way of showing up over time,(Galations 6:7). Our thinking determines our choices and our choices determine our action. Right thinking reveal right choices.
Past practices can only change with right selections.
- Your Picks reveal
- Your Practice that show
- Your Place in relationship to God
Wrong thinking will result in actions and behavior like two people talking. After a long evening of conversation the host said, “I hate to put you out, but I have to get up at six o’clock in the morning to catch a plane.” “Good heavens, ” said the guest. “I thought you were at my house!”
Wrong choices will always reveal wrong thinking. Are you exercising the right choice when it comes to living for God? Remember the choice is yours are you exercising the right choice?