A young lady was bragging to her girlfriends about her good fortune. “I have two handsome men who want to marry me, and I can’t decide which one to choose. I can live with either of them!”

One of her friends wisely said, “Your job is to determine which one of them you can’t live without.”

Everyone has a decision to make: Will we accept or reject Christ as our Savior.

When we choose to accept Him and the life He has to offer, we settle our eternal destiny. Once we have accepted Him as our Savior our life will be different. When we turn from our sin to the Savior, we are given the power to live an abundant life that is satisfying and fulfilling and one that pleases and honors God.

Sin is not a defect in our personality but a disease that destroys us. Sin is not an attitude or an accident, but a decision to turn against God. Sin is not a mistake but a willing rebellion against God’s laws. God’s Word says that “the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we are eternally grateful to You for giving us the opportunity to choose life through Your Son, Jesus Christ. We ask that You will become the Master in our lives and keep us from sin. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Even before getting out of bed this morning, I had to make a decision: Would I hit the “snooze” button and rest a little longer or would I turn off the alarm and start my day? It is not possible to go for any length of time without having to make a decision. And although all of us are making decisions most of the time, we rarely take time to think about our “decision making process.”

Every decision we make affects our lives one way or another. Some decisions last a life time and can bring joy and satisfaction or sorrow and guilt. Some can be changed immediately if we see things going in the wrong direction. Others engulf us and seem to squeeze the life out of us. Often we want to blame others for our decisions, but ultimately, we are accountable for every one.

Solomon provided us with excellent decision making advice: “For lack of guidance a nation falls; but victory is won through many advisors.” What applies to a nation also applies to an individual. Gathering information from a variety of reliable people will provide guidance, insight and direction and lead to the best decision.

In this verse, an “uncommon” word is used: guidance. It refers to the “tackle” or the “ropes” that enable a ship to stay on course. People are much like ships: where there is no guidance even the shortest journey can be disastrous. Learning the “ropes” that come from God’s wisdom will lead us through the charted course that God has laid out for us before the foundation of the world.

No wonder He is called the Wonderful Counselor!

Prayer:  Father, may we always seek Your guidance for each decision we make in life. May we always look to You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Proverbs 11:14 For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers.

Whenever I hear the word “gain” I think it is related to “weight.” Especially my weight. There are very few mornings that I do not step on the scale to get my “daily report” on what I ate yesterday. Most nutritionists do not recommend such a program. But my hope to see the arrow pointing downward remains steadfast.
A gain or increase can be good or bad, exciting or depressing, encouraging or discouraging, depending on what the gain refers to. If we depend on the stock market, a gain can be a good thing. But, if we see a gain in our personal debt, it can be disturbing. Our gains or losses, for the most part, are usually in the physical realm.

Solomon, however, speaks of a type of gain, or being able to attain some “thing” as long as we live. Educators speak of “life” valuable and available to and offered to us in Proverbs. Our “attaining” more of God’s wisdom is very important for all Christians. We are constantly challenged to “grow” throughout Scripture and Proverbs provides the path!

The word used for wisdom in this verse also means skillfulness – applying knowledge that comes from God to our lives every day so we can do “things” right.

As we go one step further, we come to the fact that it is possible to develop decision making skills that are God honoring and enable us to establish life-principals that will bring us success. God’s proverbs can guide us through life, help us in our relationships with others, lead to good practices in business, enrich our homes and bless God.

Prayer: Lord, You’ve left us “no excuses” on how we are to live life if we are Christians. Thanks for the directions! In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Proverbs 1:2 for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of insight;

The class was excited to meet their new art teacher. Waiting expectantly for their first assignment, the teacher stood before the class and said, “I want each of you to draw a square, a triangle and a rectangle. And I want you to do your best.”

After a few minutes she began to walk among the students and observe their work. Pausing to look at the work Bobby was doing she noticed that his lines were not straight.

“Look, Bobby,” she said, “that line isn’t straight.”

“I know,” he admitted, “but I can straighten it later.”

“Bobby,” she replied, “a straight line never needs to be straightened. Do it right the first time!”

The Psalmist wrote, “I have chosen to be faithful; I have determined to live by your law.” In this psalm the author reveals two critical decisions: first, to be faithful to God’s laws and, secondly, to not be deterred from being faithful by being fully committed to keeping God’s laws. He said, “I am determined!”

God has given each of us the wonderful gift of choice. In this psalm, the author said that he made a decision that would guide every decision he would ever make.

If our decisions are based on the teachings of God’s Word, we will not need to go back and “straighten the lines.” May Your Word light our paths and guide our steps.

Prayer: We pray, Lord, that we will surrender our lives completely to You and think the truth, speak the truth, live the truth and do things right the first time. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Psalm 119:30 I have chosen the way of truth; Your judgments I have laid before me.

It was a stormy night. The waves were high, the winds fierce and the stars hidden behind angry clouds. Suddenly, from the bridge of his ship, the captain saw lights in front of him in the distance. He immediately had his signalman send a message: “I’m the captain of a large battleship. Change you course ten degrees.”

Back came a reply: “I’m a seaman first class, Sir. You change your course ten degrees.”

“I said I’m a captain. You are a seaman. I order you to change your course ten degrees,” replied the captain.

“I would, Sir, but I’m on a lighthouse and can’t change my course,” came the message from the seaman.

We find some great advice in Proverbs: “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.” The path that many travel may “seem right” but it is not right. It may offer many options and choices that seem exciting and require few sacrifices, but ultimately it destroys the soul and ends in death.

The right choice often requires hard work and difficult decisions, self-sacrifice and doing without. It may demand a change in lifestyle and force us to give up attractive surroundings and pleasurable experiences.

Giving in often requires giving up what matters most in life: living to please God and being blessed by Him.

Prayer: Often in life, Heavenly Father, we know the right thing to do. But knowing what is right and doing it is often difficult. Give us strength, we pray, to “do right.” In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Scripture for Today: Proverbs 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.