Yesterday I came across this article by Rev. Carl Crouse of Sumas Advent Christian Church. I do not know anything about this pastor or the church he serves, so I am not recommending it or not recommending it. What I do know is that the portion of the article I am sharing is good and it helped me this week. Hopefully it will help you.
“All choices have consequences. One wise and insightful person in this room told me a few days ago, ‘You can’t buy a life at the dollar store.’ What that means: when life is out of control you have to make hard choices, stick to doing the right thing, be faithful in your commitments. It is not easy. It costs something to have a good and meaningful life. I appreciate the insight of Rick Warren: ‘Many of our troubles occur because we base our choices on unreliable authorities; culture (“everyone is doing it”), tradition (“we’ve always done it”), reason (“it seems logical”), or
emotion (“it just felt right”.)’ The highest character choices are based on truth and faithfulness to your commitments. You may just get thrown to the lions. You can’t buy a meaningful and satisfying life at the dollar store. It takes commitment, faithfulness and consistency no matter the results. Is Jesus Lord of your life? Are you fully committed to your family? Filter all your choices through your commitments ~ what is the right thing to do.
There may be unintended consequences for doing what is right. Do good and right anyway. Make God honoring choices anyway. The story of Daniel in the lion’s den is one of the most loved stories in the Bible. The story is filled with intrigue and twists, a duped king forced to follow a rule he doesn’t want, and bad guys torn to pieces. Somehow Daniel survives! Daniel makes the right choice based on his faith in God, knowing the consequences of being tossed into a den of hungry lions. Nobody wants to be thrown into a Lion’s Den, but to remain true to God and faithful to our commitments, we must be willing and ready to face the Lions.
Dare to be a Daniel.
Dare to make the right choices, the good, the God honoring choices. Daniel stuck with his commitments. He chose the Lion’s Den over freedom. Christians live in a world of spiritual hostility where the temptation to compromise our faith is with us every day. In many parts of the world, standing up for Christ means suffering and death. We continue to see Christians around the world killed for refusing to renounce their faith. For us it may mean ridicule, being left out, perhaps being passed over. It often leads to tension at home and on the job.
Dare to be a Daniel.”
In Christ Alone
No responses yet