I would like to share ….

I would like to share my thoughts and opinions on the New Year and our choices. The beginning of a New Year brings various resolutions for changes, better choices, and improvements in our lives.

Some we are able to keep and others eventually fall by the wayside. God does not force us to love or obey him. He gave us a free will to make our own choices, as we saw in Adam and Eve. Even if we don’t make New Year resolutions, we all face choices daily from the following list: God or Satan, right or wrong, good or evil, truth or lies, love or hate, belief or unbelief, darkness or light, compassion or indifference, righteousness or corruption, faithful or unfaithful, moral or immoral, helpful or harmful, forgiving or unforgiving, honest or dishonest, hope or despair, blessings or cursings, reject or condone and accept, etc.

Before we know it these choices have become our lives, which are like a vapor that appears for a moment and then vanishes away. We live and die with the choices we make. Even death has two options, Heaven or Hell. Choose wisely every day in the New Year because we are not guaranteed a tomorrow.

[ Editor’s Note: Back aound 2008, I was working with the youth at Immanuel Baptist Church in Marion, sort of as a fill- in- on-Wednesday- nights sort of guy, and one of the lessons I did ( out of a book, not something I came up with) was titled “ Coming Soon,” based on Revelation 22: 20, wherein we are told to “ Behold, I am coming soon.” The point of the lesson was, much like you end your message with, we are not guaranteed tomorrow, so we should live our lives as though we truly believed that Jesus was returning, not tomorrow but today. It closed with, “ What do you want to be doing when Jesus returns?” It was probably a little heavy for 13- 17 year- olds, and honestly probably a litte heavy for anyone who gives it serious thought… so thanks for that remonder, but it’s certainly something we should all give some consideration]