March 21

“Now fear the Lord and serve Him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourself this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

There are so many pressures we put upon ourselves! We want to be successful, we want to be happy, we want people to like us. We want to please our parents, our spouses, our friends, ourselves. These desires are natural and can be useful if we don’t allow them to become all consuming. Even the best of our aspirations will become an idol if we value it above God. You cannot serve God and your own pleasure; it will bend and break you. Chasing after success or approval will make you weary and leave you without comfort. Only God is worth chasing after because only He is eternal. God asks each of us to commit to Him today. We can’t fall back on tradition or trust that “our family has always been important in the church.” We can’t promise to do it tomorrow. No one else can do it for us – not a spouse, parent, or child. How will you answer Him?

DEAREST LORD, FORGIVE US FOR SERVING OUR DESIRES, MAKING THEM INTO OUR OWN HOUSEHOLD GODS WHICH WE ARE RELUCTANT TO THROW AWAY. HELP US TO SEEK YOU FIRST EVEN WHEN IT SEEMS THAT IT WILL COST US DEARLY. STRENGTHEN AND PROTECT US WHEN FOLLOWING YOU MEANS THAT WE DISPLEASE OTHERS, EVEN WITHIN OUR OWN FAMILIES. HELP US TO LOVE YOU MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE. AMEN.

-Shared by Katherine McDaniel