The Girl in the Middleਨਮੂਨਾ

AT THE CROSSROADS

In Jeremiah 6:16, the Lord said to His people, “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.(NIV)" God was calling the Israelites’ attention to the decision to either walk along the path of His commandments or along the path of their own way. He wanted them to come to Him, to seek out the truth He gave them years ago in the wilderness through Moses. Not only did He long to show them the good way, but He also longed for them to experience rest for their souls.

We too stand at a crossroads—in middle moments—as we face opportunities every day to let the love of God compel us. When we run into someone who is hard to get along with, we stand at a crossroads. When the Lord is leading us in a direction that is not in alignment with our own five-year plan, we stand at a crossroads. When we can boldly live out our faith in Jesus or decide to stay comfortable in our homes, on our campuses, and in our work­places, we stand at a crossroads.

We all have room to grow in this. That doesn’t mean we need to pull ourselves up by the bootstraps and try to practice our faith out of willpower. We need the Holy Spirit to help us become more like Jesus. Paul wrote that “it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good plea­sure” (Philippians 2:13 NIV).

Before any change happens in our lives, though, we must first do what God called the Israelites to do: stand and look. God is beckoning us to recognize and confess the daily moments in which we are choosing our comfort over His ancient, good paths.

God is so kind that He not only wants to give us eyes to see our middle moments, but He also wants to personally, closely show us the best choices to make. He wants us to live driven by His love, no matter what, because He knows that living that kind of life satisfies our souls like noth­ing and no one else can.

Ask God to show you the daily moments you have been choosing fear and comfort over His ancient, good paths. How have you been choosing temporary comfort over obedience to Him?