Deuteronomy 28; Joshua 24:1-15
Not too long ago I was having one of those moments when I was feeling sorry for myself. Thank God for His Spirit who got my attention. The Lord began to deal with me for allowing junk get next to me when I really should know better. Let me be direct – I had made the choice to allow hindrances to control my walk with Christ, and it was no one’s fault but my own.
Every day we make choices. Some on the surface may appear to be mundane, (i.e. which route will I take to work, what will I wear, what will I eat) and some have more impact on our lives, (i.e. where will I live, where will I work, who will I marry). Some choices we make sub conscientiously, while others we spend hours, days, or even longer, agonizing over what we will do.
It is quite obvious that the Lord is concerned about choices and decisions we make in our lives – and He goes so far as to offer His assistance and warn us should we choose not to follow His guidance. By now scriptures such as, “In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths,” (Prov. 3:6) or, “…there is a way that seemeth right to man, but the end thereof are the ways of death,” (Prov. 16:25) should be very familiar to us. Yet how many of us fall into the trap of not checking in with God before we make choices? How many of us fall victim of running our options by someone who has no experience (or proven failure) in what we are experiencing. You know how that goes – you complain about your spouse to your single (or divorced) friend; or you take career advice from your unemployed, under-employed, or employed but “hates their job” friend.
Now we get frustrated when our children take advice from their friends. We’ll go on and on about how their 15 year old friend doesn’t have a job, or house, and still they take their advice over yours. Yet, we do this to God. Raise your hand if you have taken the advice of your friend over your pastor (now put it down before someone sees you). Well my friend, just know when things begin to crumble – we have no one to blame but ourselves. We made that choice.
Joshua led Israel across the Jordan River into the Promised Land. He served Moses and saw the Lord deliver Israel out of Egypt. He saw God lead them with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He saw God send manna, quail and water from a rock. He saw God give them victory after victory. Yet he also knew how fragile and fickle people could be. He warned Israel that they had a choice of who to serve: they could choose Jehovah God, who had performed all of those feats (and more), or they could choose to serve the god their fathers served on the other side of the flood. These were the false gods that had them in bondage. These were the false gods who beat them and destroyed their children. These were the false gods who wanted to steal their destiny. Joshua then went a little further. He wanted the record to show, whatever the children of Israel decided, he and his family would serve the Lord.
How many of you have heard the saying, “…the devil made me do it,” or, “…I just could not help myself.f” Well to that I say, read I Corinthians 10:13. Or I’ll say read James 1:12-15. In a sense, James tells us that we cannot blame God for our sin. James tells us we have a choice to sin or not – and if we give in to sin, it is because we chose to yield to our flesh.
My friends – how many times have we read or quoted segments of the promises of blessings in Deuteronomy 28? There have been songs written about that passage of scripture. However, the blessings are only recorded in the first 14 or 15 verses. The curses, however, take up nearly the next 50 or so verses. The Bible is clear – if we choose to obey God, the blessings in the first 14 verses apply to our lives; they will overtake us. If we choose not to obey God – make way for the curses. Now you may ask yourself, why would anyone choose to be cursed? My response to that is: (1) we do not believe the Bible; (2) we do not believe what is recorded in the Word applies to us; and (3) we do not realize the choices we are making are detrimental.
Have you ever noticed how the enemy helps you make bad choices? Yet when the bill is due – he is nowhere to be found. Just ask Eve, Adam, Esau, King Saul, the foolish prophet in II Kings, or Ananias and Sapphira. The friend who encourages you to leave your spouse isn’t there when the children cry out for their parent. The friend who told you to leave your job isn’t there when you need money for your rent. The friend who tells you to ignore your pastor isn’t around when you need to be prayed out of a horrible pit. And we have no one to blame because we made the choice.
I am so glad God put it in my hands to make a choice whether or not I want to live holy, be victorious, have a strong marriage, lead my children in holiness, be a successful pastor, and worship the God of my salvation. And no one can stop me but me. My friend, it does not matter who dislikes you; it does not matter who has decided you are not smart enough, wise enough or born into the right family. It does not matter how many people turn their back on God and forsake Him – I have decided to be an over comer in Christ!
Recently my pastor, Bishop Thomas, was sharing something with me. He told me that the Lord showed him a glimpse of my future. He told me that the Lord showed us acquiring several properties around our current location. “Brother Pruitte, because of your faithfulness and obedience, no one can stop you but you.” Every now and then, those words are brought back to my remembrance by the Holy Spirit. Therefore when a spirit of depression, impatience or any other hindrance comes at me – I recall to my mind what the Holy Scriptures tell me. If I can do all things; if the Greater One is within me; if I am more than a conqueror; if God is with me, He is more than the world against me… If all of these things, then I have some say so in my destiny and place in God. No one can stop me, no one can hold me back and no one can tell me that it’s not my time. I can make a choice to serve God and be victorious in Him!
I bless you in the name of the Lord!