Choose to Stand

by Susan Sampson

“Each day as a mother, you have a choice to make.  Are you going to follow your own desires, the world, your fears, or will you follow the Lord?  The choices you make will influence the choices your children make.” — from Falling in Love Again with Your Children

“Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest” (Ephesians 2:3, NASB). 

“And if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15, NASB).

Every minute of every day we must choose.  Will we serve self or Christ?  Will we put the tennis balls in first or the rice?  Will we take a stand for Jesus or sit in the seat of scoffers?  Will we train or entertain?  Will we live for the temporal or eternal?

This is so hard for me.  Apart from Christ we can do none of this.  Apart from the grace of God we wouldn’t even want to do any of this!

My flesh does not want to stand.  My flesh prefers to sit.  Actually, my flesh prefers to lay in my bed.

As I read the Ephesians Scripture above this week I was convicted by how much I still indulge the desires of the flesh and of the mind.  I wrote a note in my book next to it saying, “I do not want to do this any more — Lord, help me repent of my sin and turn in faith to you, looking to Christ — my helper, my friend, my bridegroom, my Savior and Lord.”

We’ve been saved from this life.  Listen now to verses 4 and 5: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)…” (NASB)

Because of the Gospel I want to stand.  I want to teach my children to stand.  I know this is impossible, but I believe by faith that with God all things are possible.

The Lord has provided us incredible tools from this week’s lecture!  Let us not give into our flesh, the enemy, or the world.  Let us set aside our pet projects which have no eternal value and invest in our children trusting the Lord to provide all we need!

Let us take time this summer, before school starts while we have extra time and choose to serve the Lord instead of our flesh.  Let us cry out to Him for His grace to be able to do this.  Let us not squander this divine opportunity!  Lord, have mercy on us!  Enable us to build our house on the Rock and not the sinking sand!

Father, please give us a holy and reverent fear of the Lord.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  Please train us by your grace “to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives” now (Titus 2:11-12, NIV).  We want our actions, Lord, to match our words of devotion.  We want to be doers of the Word and not just hearers.  Please do in our hearts and in our children’s hearts what we cannot.  We look to you and your unfailing love.  We look to you to enable us to stand and teach our children to stand.  Thank you for loving us right where we are!  In Jesus’ name, Amen.