Defined by Decision

Colossians 3:15-17 “15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

This passage paints a beautiful picture of the Christian life. If peace and love rule in our hearts, then life might just feel a little easier. If we spent our time dwelling in the word of Christ, our wisdom would grow, and we would be better people for it. As I say all this, I know there is someone thinking, “this all sounds wonderful, but who has the time.”

And while I’ve said those exact words myself, I also know this largely comes down to the choices we make. The biggest threat to our lives and happiness is found in choosing what is good now over something great later. Our lives are all about balance and we must decide how we use the time we have. More time at work or more time with my family. Do I go to the gym or do I go watch TV. Do I cook a healthy dinner or just order in.

Life is defined by decisions. And we may burn bridges we don’t have time to mend. We go left when we know we should go right, and it takes our focus away from the peace and love that could rule our hearts. Often, it’s only in the aftermath that we realize what is happening, and we need to do the hard work of finding our way back and getting our hearts right.

Thankfully, there is always a way back. As people of Christ let us do our best to have everything we do be in the name of Jesus.