Devotional - September 24, 2025
Scripture: Deuteronomy 30:15 See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction.
In Lewis Caroll's story, Alice in Wonderland, Alice asks the Cheshire Cat for directions, and the Cat replies, "that depends on where you want to get to." When Alice says she doesn't care where she is going, the Cat responds, "then it doesn't matter where you go." Meaning, any way you go is just as meaningless as any other, and it is true. But for many, making choices is scary. They are afraid they will make mistakes or fail and mess things up. Receiving the challenge Joshua gives Israel in today's text could be quite daunting to say the least. It is daunting due to the way one hears the challenge. What they hear is, either you follow the way of the LORD perfectly, or you are on the other path. No mistakes allowed. Put in context, Joshua says follow the LORD your God or go back to your idols and end up where you were again, or worse (Deut 30: 15-18). Sounds easy, who wants to go back? Well..., for some reason we do. Our old ways and beliefs become appealing when their negative effects begin to fade. Our attitude shifts to getting our cake and eating it too. We think it will be different this time. It isn't and it won't be. As we seek to live and be in God's Kingdom, we bring that Kingdom to where we are, to us and those around us. Following Jesus is an ever and ongoing process of learning. We make a lot of mistakes, but we trust God's faithfulness to see us through (Proverbs 24:16). We learn from our mistakes as we learn about living the Godly life (Mt 18:14, 2 Peter 3:9). Many draw back from following the way Jesus teaches because they are afraid of being punished by God. Again, that could not be further from the truth. Jesus will teach you as you study the Bible, pray, and seek to live-out your relationship with God in your daily life (Mt 11:29). It is not easy, Jesus never said it would be (Mt 7: 13-14), but believe it or not, it can be fun. That's right, fun. You will learn to laugh again, even at yourself. Not a sadistic laugh, or one filled with anxiety, but a heartfelt loving laugh. You learn to love God, yourself, and others. Unlike Alice, you will care about where you are going and how you get there (Jn 14:6). It will matter to you, because you no longer want to be associated with what is destroying what God has given, but instead you seek to serve the One who saved it.
Pray with me.., Holy God, we are thankful that You gave us a way to live our lives. And, we are thankful You give us the grace to live it. Hear our prayers for our loved ones, bless them we pray, in accordance with their needs. We continue to ask Your blessing upon our church, lead us O God, so we can be the people You call us to be, in Jesus' name, Amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Brian
