The Importance of Wise Choices

In the pages of Holy Writ, there are very few people whose birth was heralded by angels. Samson was one of those privileged few.

Samson was born with the greatest of godly privileges, with the calling and potential to be a deliverer of Israel. However, his lack of the fear of the Lord fuelled his poor life choices, which caused him to turn from the Lord his God. It set him on a downward path that would not only lead to his ruin, but loss of vision, literally, and ultimately cause him to be the taunt of his enemies. Samson looked away from the Lord, and was disrespectful and dishonouring of all things holy, and it cost him dearly. But God, who is a merciful God to anyone who truly repents, was good to him. When he called out to God in desperation in his final days, and turned back to the Lord, the word of God over Samson’s life was fulfilled, despite his waywardness.

There are many voices in life clamouring for our attention, and when we give heed to the seducing voice of human reasoning, or our fleshly thoughts, we can easily be led astray from the path of life. ‘There is a way that seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death’ (Proverbs 14:12).  When we learn the fear of the Lord, it will deliver us from the snare of man. ‘For the Lord shall be thy confidence and shall keep thy foot from being taken’ (Proverbs 3:26). We need to be alert, and aware that God will not compete with other voices for our attention.

Ruth, on the other hand, was born outside of the parameters of God’s blessing. She was a Gentile, with no obvious access to the favour of God. But because of her right choices in life, she was catapulted into the lineage of Christ (Matthew 1:5) with those timeless words to Naomi, her mother-in-law, “Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God” (Ruth 1:16).

No doubt she was drawn by the godly day to day life of her mother-in-law, who, despite the severe tragedies in her life of the losses of her husband and two sons, remained faithful to her God. Naomi may have been down, but she wasn’t out, and something of the presence of God drew Ruth in the right direction. Ruth not only looked, but turned her feet, in the direction of the Lord, and it was her saving grace.

No matter where we find ourselves in life, the presence of God over our lives makes all the difference. God can still use us to bless others, if we stay determined to follow Him. Naomi’s disappointment about how her life had turned out was not a deterrent to Ruth. Something about this older woman’s life tugged and echoed at a longing in the heart of the younger woman.

There is a divine calling and word over each of our lives, but our free-will choices will ultimately determine in which direction we choose to go. Whether we recognise it or not, the presence of God over our lives affects others, but the question is whose voice are we heeding? Today someone is being drawn towards Jesus because of you. You matter!