(Remembering Mother)
Joshua 24: 14-15 (NIV®)
“Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
If I heard her pray it once, I heard it hundreds of times, “… and Lord, help us make good decisions.”
My Mother knew that being a Christian was more than having fire insurance. She knew the importance of our decisions. She knew we needed God’s help to make good ones. We knew Christ was her Lord by the decisions she made in life. When she was treated badly, she did not retaliate even when she had every right and the ability to do so. She gave selflessly to her children and grandchildren. She lived a simple life of helping others. She wanted to do what was good and right and sought God’s help in knowing what that was. As best she knew how, sometimes with loss to herself, she followed through with what she believed The Lord would have her do. The Lord blessed her and blessed others through her, especially her family.
None of us are perfect. Mother never expected perfection, but she knew we needed to seek God in every choice. Does God get a say in who we marry or don’t marry, the work we do or don’t do, or the friends we keep or don’t keep? Where do we go, what do we do, or to whom do we turn when we are rejected, hurt or misrepresented? Do we run to Him when we’re broken, or do we seek the things we think can numb or blunt those feelings and memories? How do we celebrate when we experience victory, success, or happiness? Do we recognize God as the source of every good thing and rejoice in Him? Even more simply, will I continue looking or look away? Will I ignore that or address it? Will I make the effort or just sit on the sideline? I could lay out scenario after scenario, but I think you get the picture. Pretty much everything in life comes down to a decision. How to react, what to do, how to think, what to plan for, what to say… the applications are endless. In the end, almost everything in life has a decision lurking somewhere in the shadows and we need God’s help to choose well.
Hence my Mother’s consistent prayer for us. She wanted to know that all of her family chose Jesus. She wanted us to all make that decision because she knew that decision would establish the trajectory of our lives. It establishes who we are and who’s we are. All other questions or decisions will fall under the umbrella of that one most important choice.
So what is your choice? My Mother would be thrilled and honored to know that a day reflecting on her life and prayer would be a day when you would get it settled. Choose Jesus. You need Him. It may not always be easy, but it will be the best decision you ever make. Choose Him now and always. My Mother chose Him. I chose Him and continue to choose Him every day. What will you choose? It’s your choice.