To set our mind on the things of God, we must consistently choose to have the Lord’s viewpoint and reject conformity with the ways of the world.
From Romans 12:2: “Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
Life comes at us every day
Today’s choices have much to say
Right now, Option A looks quite good
Wishing for luck, knocking on wood
Infinite possibilities
Some become liabilities
One choice navigates life forward
Life seems so straightforward
Another turns life upside-down
Flipping plans into dark ghost town
Daily question: What choice to make?
Tomorrow’s answer now at stake
Opportunities from choices
Watch out for temptation’s voices
Making choices, powerful tool
Please just one, become a jewel
Life’s mistakes searching for feedback
Answers help to keep us on track
Menu of choices fills desires
Lighting up our inherent fires
Near life’s hot stove, always aware
Certain choices may burn, beware
Searching with hands, hearts, and minds
Our next choice, what will it now find?
We make destiny with every turn, every choice.
Know what you want, work to get it, then value it once you have it.
When confronted with a challenge, the committed heart will search for a solution. The undecided heart searches for an escape.
Life itself is a privilege, but to live life to the fullest–well, that is a choice.
You will recognize your own path when you come upon it because you will suddenly have all the energy and imagination you will ever need.
Make sure you visualize what you really want, not what someone else wants for you.
Some people regard discipline as a chore. For me, it is a kind of order that sets me free to fly.
From 2 Timothy 1:6-7: “For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.”
Words used every day
Little or much to say
Used in positive ways
Conveying life’s essays
Mindful, powerful voices
Daily, humble choices
Impacting other lives
Celebrate with high fives
Disciplined purpose speaks
Positivity seeks
Sharing tender kindness
Truthful, without blindness
Careful to help and heal
Offering a square deal
Words paying it forward
True and straightforward
Thoughtful expressions said
Weaving with tender thread
Replace evil with good
Words plain and understood
Honest lyrics in song
Carried through all day long
Life unfolds from our text
Watchful where words go next
This poem was written several days before January 6, 2021. Its intention was to praise and encourage the positive power of words. The events taking place in Washington, DC on January 6 showed the negative power of words. How will our future words speak?
Faith is not a feeling; it is action. It is a willed choice.
From Hebrews 11:1-3: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.”
Elisabeth Elliot (1926-2015) was a Christian author and speaker. She and her husband, Jim, spent time as missionaries in Ecuador.
We are either the masters or the victims of our attitudes. It is a matter of personal choice. Who we are today is the result of choices we made yesterday. Tomorrow, we will become what we choose today.
From James 3:17-18: “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.”
Running a quick errand for mother
Feeling twenty-five cents in my hand
Heading to the nearby little store
Milk, bread—let’s see what candy looks grand
Years ago, two bits meant feeling rich
A few coins equal twenty-five cents
Today, this sweet tooth will be in luck
Let this candy shopping now commence
Below the front counter, treasures wait
Friendly woman cashier stands and smiles
A few pennies for Sweet Tarts and more
Licorice, Smarties add to the pile
Looking to spend one final nickel
Picking through endless, tempting choices
Spying at last, a sweet Hershey bar
Overcome by sugar-filled voices
Arriving back home without delay
Pockets filled with sweetest treasure
Mother asks about the milk and bread
Two bucks unspent, plus her displeasure
Growing up in my childhood neighborhood, there was a little store just a few blocks away. My brothers and I made many a journey to the store for milk, bread, and other quick-to-find essentials for our mother. I cannot recall forgetting the milk and bread, but having a few coins in my pocket was treasure waiting to be spent on the candy found there.
The poem lists a few of the types of candy found back in the 1960s. Do you have a favorite candy from your childhood?
Big Sky Buckeye 