free to choose

Wow, it's Thursday night. This week I have been completely distracted by papers, interviews, work and being a little under the weather, and it has really made me think about our freedom of choice. We have the freedom to make our own decisions, and often we make them out of selfish wants and desires rather than for the "right" reasons. When we choose to be distracted by the real world and caught up in worldly things, we are both ignoring God and basicallly pushing Him away. The less time we spend with God, the more we distance ourselves from Him and fail to grow in our relationship and in our faith. Also, when we focus on ourselves and the world, we are telling God that we can be self-sufficient, which is impossible! God is the only one who can satisfy us, and we have to depend on Him because if we depend on ourselves, it will just create confusion and ultimately, disaster. Psalm 37:4 says to delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Some people might interpret this verse literally, and therefore believe that the Lord will give you whatever you want if you ask Him for it. Ask and you shall receive. . . But, I interpret it differently, and the Lord has a deeper meaning to those words. If we choose to follow the Lord, to submit to Him, to find complete satisfaction in Him, then He will give us our heart's desires-- but our desires will actually be His that He instills in us. If we are following the Lord and trusting in Him, we are making a good choice, and He will change our desires to fit His. He will not always give us what we want, because then He wouldn't be a sovereign, powerful God. He sometimes makes us suffer, but He blesses us everyday, so we should look for it and praise Him for it! You have the freedom to choose a relationship with Him, and when you do or if you have, He is always waiting for you with a listening ear and a loving heart. It is so important to come to the Lord when you need help making a decision, because He has the plan for your life. You cannot make it yourself because your world will start falling apart. Proverbs 16:9 says, "The heart of a man plans His way, but the Lord establishes his steps." So, I encourage you to come to the Lord before you make choices because even though you have the freedom to decide yourself, you also have the freedom to come to Him, and He wants you to do that. Choose to pray; choose to listen; choose to obey.