“Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.”
Joshua 24:15
“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.”
Titus 2:11-12
Do you remember when you said “yes” to Jesus? How long ago was it? A few months, maybe years? I said “yes” to the Lord in November 1964 when I was a teenager. But I also said “yes” to Him just the other day.
After a row with Ken, I escaped to the shopping mall with a friend to get my mind off the quarrel. While meandering past a sales rack of blouses, I could no longer contain my self-pity. I began sobbing right next to a couple of mannequins. I couldn’t hide my face in a tissue, and my wheelchair was too big for me to escape behind several clothes racks. All I could do was sit there, cry, and stare at the mannequins with the plastic smiles.
While wiping my eyes with the backside of my hand splint, I knew what I had to do. In between sobs, I said out loud what I’ve said so many times before, “Yes, Jesus, I choose you. I don’t choose self-pity or resentment. I say ‘yes’ to You!”
Even though my face was still wet, my heart filled with peace. Nothing about my husband had changed. Shoppers on the other side of the store still picked through the racks… teenagers still ambled by, giggling, and eating popcorn… but everything was different because of my peaceful heart. Because I said “yes” to Jesus.
Dear Lord, I choose You right now. I will be faced with many challenges today, and so in the power of Your Spirit, I say “yes” to following You each moment.
