The Choice Is Yours…

The above picture was taken in the back garden of the lovely home we have been staying at for the past two weeks following the sale of our house. This isn’t your typical back yard at all. There are paths that meander through the plants and trees and flowers. It is a place that is perfect for sitting and contemplating life and simply being still in the presence of God.

A lot has been happening these past few weeks and months. Three trips out to Estes Park, Colorado to , first, interview with Presbyterian Community Church of the Rockies, the second to preach at the church and have the congregation vote to extend a call to me as their new pastor, and the third to find a house. When you add to that the fact that we had to prepare to sell our house here in Florida so that we could buy the house we signed a contract on in Colorado AND pack up our household goods to be shipped out, well… lets just stay it has been a whirlwind. All of this happened because about eighteen months ago I made the choice to respond to the call of God to seek a new church to serve. Transitions like that can be scary and, at times, overwhelming. Transitions aren’t something new to me. The transition from parish ministry to the Air Force Chaplaincy was a result of responding to God’s call in my life. The transition from the Air Force Chaplaincy back to the parish ministry was a result of another call of God in my life. The transition from First Presbyterian Church of DeFuniak Springs, Florida to Presbyterian Community Church of the Rockies has also been the result of God’s call in my life.

When God calls, we have a choice. We always have a choice. Even deciding not to follow the call of God is a choice. This was the situation that the people of Israel were facing in Joshua 24. To put the passage for this Sunday in context, we need to remember the story. Following the Exodus from Egypt and the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the people of God were poised to enter the promised land. Along the way they had dealt with the results of their own idolatry and poor choices. Moses was no longer guiding them as he had when they escaped Egypt and slavery. Joshua was the leader whom God had called to lead the people into the promised land which God had promised first to Abraham so long ago.

Joshua called the elders and leaders of Israel together before God. God reminded them of their sacred history. God also reminded them that long ago their ancestors had worshiped and followed other gods. They were called to remember who it was they were called to serve. Do you wish to serve the gods of your ancestors? Do you wish to look back with longing and focus on the past? Or do you wish to follow the one who is leading you forward into the promised land. The choice was theirs and theirs alone. Joshua knew what he and his family planned on doing. They were going to worship and serve the Lord God who had brought them out of the land of slavery and into the promised land. They were going to worship and serve the one who didn’t give up on them, even when they had erred and strayed like lost sheep. They were going to move forward into the future with confidence.

In every transition in life we have to make a choice. In his song, “Glory Days”, Bruce Springsteen talks about the high school athlete who looks back with longing on the days behind him. Focusing on the “glory days” he seeks to relive them despite the fact that life has indeed moved on. The picture he paints is not a pretty one. The former football star is stuck in the past and as a result doesn’t move forward. Jesus is actually harsher in his comments in Luke 9:62 when he says, “No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” In a sense, I believe this is what Joshua is asking the people to decide at the crossroads point or transition in their lives as the people of God. Are you going to look back and worship the gods of your ancestors? Are you going to look back with longing on the “good old days” in Egypt? Or are you going to serve the one who has called you forward into a future and a hope as would be later promised to the people in Jeremiah 29:11 (For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.)

In life’s transitions we always have a choice. It may not always seem like it at the time, but we do. When I was struggling with the decision whether or not to retire from the Air Force, I wasn’t sure what the future was going to hold. Would I become a barista at a coffee shop as I had considered? Would I stay in an institution where I no longer felt called? I could have looked back with longing on the “glory days” and been frozen in time. However, God called me to look forward and trust in God’s leading. As a result, not only was I recalled to ministry, I was also given an incredible partner in faith and life in Denise. I would never have had that opportunity if I hadn’t chosen to serve the Lord and trust in the Lord’s guidance.

Every time we face transitions in our lives… every time the pathway in the woods (or the garden) come to a decision point… every time this happens we have a choice. Do we look backward with longing to the “glory days” and wish for something that is no more? Or do we look forward to the future with confidence in the one who has plans for us for our welfare and not our harm, to give us a future with hope. Each time, we have a choice… Choose this day whom you will serve… As for me and my household? We will serve the Lord. Will you join us?