The most important decision that we can make today is to follow Jesus, but let’s just say that we decide that Jesus is not for us. Whatever decision that we make aside, we will still have to take out the garbage, walk the dog and get a haircut. Bills have to be paid, etc. We might be pursuing a career in medicine but what kind of health care professional will you be without Jesus? We might still teach, work at a supermarket or be a mechanic but something has changed. You may get married but what kind of marriage will it be without Jesus as the central figure guiding you?
The life choices that we make indicate our spiritual philosophy of life and ever so slowly that philosophy begins to show in everything that we say and do. The Bible talks of a narrow path that leads to the gates of heaven. If we veer too far to the right or left we may end up in a ditch somewhere. There are many examples of how this actually plays out in people’s lives.
Take the case of a recent New York City suicide. A thirty year old woman decided that life was just too hard and so she decided to jump to her death from an apartment balcony, mon Dieu! This woman was Miss USA 2019, she had a law degree, and a Masters of Business Administration. She was a correspondent on the entertainment show Extra. She lived a rarefied life hobnobbing with the rich and powerful of the New York City entertainment community. Was she stressed out or an over-achiever? I don’t know her but, after living in New York my whole life, I can honestly say the signs are there.
Many people in Westchester County New York that I have known were hyper-focused on their career and spiritually dead. The Bible teaches us that it is wisdom to “seek ye first the kingdom of heaven,” meaning put God first in all that you do. This will naturally lead us to a more balanced and rewarding life. With God as the head of your career, and your interpersonal relationships, how can you go wrong? That is what it says at the end of the above bible verse when it proclaims, But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you”-Matthew 6:33.
This woman had many achievements and yet looking at her life reveals so much spiritual turmoil. As she approached her 30th birthday, she revealed in an article in Allure magazine just how miserable she was. She talked about the prospect of aging and how poorly people are treated as they age. She no longer wanted to practice law because of problems that she felt existed in the profession.
She was a supporter of the black supremacist groups Antifa and Black Lives Matter and somehow this did not bring her salvation. Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel- Jeremiah 3:23. She was looking for perfection, for justice, and for eternal youth in the wrong place for only God can bring us those things.
This made me think of another woman that I knew who had attempted suicide a number of years ago. Her name was Maggie.* Maggie also had many attributes which we think of as great achievements. However, she was not spiritually grounded in the ways of God and no amount of worldly success could make up for that hole in her life where God belonged.
She had an idealistic approach to life and was disappointed as life and this world unfolded in all their truths. She saw no other way but to attempt suicide after her boyfriend broke up with her. So talented, so beautiful and intelligent yet the world seemed to be driving her mad. Thank goodness Maggie was not successful in her attempt to end her life because just ten months later she had become a Christian, and had met a man who seemed to have more in common with her then her ex-boyfriend Max* ever did. Everything seemed better in her life than it was just a short time before. Things are seldom as bad as they feel at any given time.
We all come to many crossroads in our life and we have choices of which way to go at that time. Should we go right or should we go left? If we choose the world, our life gets more and more twisted in that direction as we continue. Maybe we grew up in church but when we went off to college we thought better of that upbringing and starting living in opposition to it. We dated a few bad boys, “oh those Christians don’t know what they are missing!”
That reminds me of a Christian camp counselor that I met when I was at a women’s ministry event last year. She was a very committed Christian until her second year of college when she began to date someone that was not a Christian. Not only that but Nick* was not studying as he should, but instead was focusing on practicing for weekends with his heavy metal band. The music that she shared with me was difficult to comprehend except maybe to say they represented downright anarchy.
When she sat next to me at that Women’s Ministry event, this and much more all came spilling out. Her life was like a ball of yarn that was badly tangled. At moments like this, there is only one thing that I have to give, and that is the clarity that choosing to focus on Jesus Christ can bring. I likewise had the same message for the sister in Christ struggling in her marriage. What I did see in several of the above mentioned stories is how people can so easily be seduced off of the path that they should be following in life.
Just one date with a non-believer and you could be heading to the clubs instead of going to church. Just one episode of any stupid television talk show could have you doubting your husband and not appreciating all that he does. Then you begin to focus on his character flaws instead of his godly attributes. Or worse, sometimes life without God leaves you feeling empty and reeling from every twist and turn that may befall you on any given day. Without that decision for Christ the daily emotions and events that take place can be overwhelming.
This world is going through some cataclysmic changes. Many feel it is time to change everything that civilization has built. Worse yet, there are many who want to replace the God given values that we have built western civilization upon with something sinister. It is already happening. In New York for example, there are college professors who think there is nothing wrong with pedophilia and politicians who openly call for an end to capitalism. Technology is not playing fair and we let them get away with it. The constitutional freedom of speech is dead because we are so weak and addicted to everything that either big tech entertains us with or that China sells us. We have sold our souls for video games and cheap Chinese goods and no longer have a righteous fear of God.
I believe that decision to follow Jesus will lead us on the right path in our relationships, in our homes, community, schools and world. Without him things are moving along but, not in the right direction. We have many decisions to make everyday, but the most important one is will we accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior and allow him to direct our path.
* some names were changed to protect privacy.
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