I’m a deliberator, an intentional processor of thoughts. I like to consider all of my options and choices, weighing them carefully before I make a decision. In truth, I tend to overthink just about everything. I’ve joked in the past that when a server at a banquet asks, “Chicken or beef?” I won’t be able to respond until I make a spreadsheet listing the pros and cons of each choice. That may be overstating it, but not by much.
In this passage, Joshua calls the people of Israel to make a choice: They can serve the gods of other nations, or they can serve the Lord. They can commit their lives to gods who have led them astray, or they can choose to commit their lives to the Living and Sovereign Lord. After 400 years of slavery in Egypt, then 40 years of wilderness wandering due to disobedience, after entering Israel, defeating enemies, and re-claiming the land, the Israelites are finally ready to settle down. They are ready for stability. They eagerly look forward to putting down new roots. And their leader, Joshua, reminds them that before they can do that they must make a choice about whom they will serve.
I may be a slow decision-maker, but this is one choice I can quickly and easily make. I’ve seen the abundant goodness of God, both in times of great joy in my life as well as in times of deep darkness. I’ve experienced God’s presence with me. I’ve known what it is like to be loved and cherished by the One who made me in His own image. I know what it feels like to be forgiven when I don’t deserve it and to receive mercy when I haven’t merited it. In powerful and amazing ways, I’ve known and lived in the abundance of God’s bountiful love. Therefore, without reservation I choose to follow and serve the Lord.
Yet I must make this choice deliberately every day. I am faced with temptations and with voices that compete for my attention and my affection. There are a million ways I could go and a million paths on which I could walk. So each day I recommit myself to God. I receive God’s grace anew each morning and tell God that for today I choose to follow Him. Perhaps today you would like to tell God the same thing.