The Choice Is Yours

I just preached a message this past Sunday about how that every person has a choice, to obey God and be blessed or to walk in disobedience and bring a curse upon themselves. The Bible is clear on this matter. (Read Deuteronomy chapter 28 for an example) It amazes me how people hear and know the truth but will reject that truth, even knowing the result of their poor choices. The woman who chases after wild dreams and empty promises from a man who wants to use her body but not make a commitment to her... Another woman who will marry a man who she readily admits that they have little in common and no communication between them, simply because she wants to be married... The man who abandons his God-given calling to pursue a woman who he knows is not going to serve God... I could go on and on, but I hear them almost every day; excuses to walk away in disobedience of God. They already know, and when I remind them that they are being disobedient they only become angry. But who will they be angry at when their world falls apart? Far too often we hear "the blessing" preached and taught as if it were merely about financial prosperity, but the blessing of God is in our health, our soul, our mind, our relationships and so many other areas. When a person willfully walks away from Godly principles for living, they invite the curse to overtake them. That's sad.  But there is another side. I see Christians who will wear themselves out emotionally, physically and spiritually trying to persuade such people to "do the right thing." The simple truth of the matter is that once we have give such people the truth, we are done. Jesus told his disciples that if they went to a place and preached the gospel and those people did not receive it, to leave and shake the dust off their feet. Once you've delivered the truth to them, it is out of your hands. Stop wearing yourself out and chasing after people who have made a willful choice to walk out from under the cloud of blessing. That's not being harsh at all, it is about realizing that there are others waiting to hear the gospel for the first time and we are wasting our time chasing people who do not want to be chased. They've made their choice and they will live with the consequences of those choices.