Guarding is strong. Guarding is powerful. Guarding is beautiful because it says what I have in me is valuable space. Trivial things and those who tarnish or bring unbeneficial substances are not welcome here.
The sacred is alive in you (1 John 4:4) and it must be cherished and protected at all costs. The Bible encourages us to, “Be sober, be vigilant…” (1 Peter 5:8). Being vigilant means I must take a proactive approach to the value in me and be very attentive to the things that seek to drain and damage it.
Many distractions come in life with its very definition meaning to steal your focus and direction from what is truly important. These distractions stand against the foundation of what one considers significant.
But to truly treasure what’s in you is to truly treat it like the jewel that it is and stand guard against all who would try to misappropriate her value. “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy…” Jesus warned His followers (John 10:10a). So, the responsibility lies within each of us to be aware and never stop protecting the beauty He offers – “abundant life” (John 10:10b).
Would it be profitable to move one’s feet from the position on the watchtower even for just a moment while an enemy creeps in unawares?
No. It would not only be unprofitable, but it could be dangerous. A foe is a foe and nothing else. His purpose is to stop your advancement while Christ is accelerating you up to go forward. But if you are slowed and your progress hindered due to a personal refusal to stand watch, then what of the treasure within? Will it be used to its maximum usefulness, or will it, through neglect and lack of vigilance, dwindle and waste away?
The beauty within… the value within calls us to stand guard and to treasure and protect the significant.
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“Jotham. . . did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. . . and the people did yet corruptly.” 2 Chronicles 27:1-2
It’s up to you to live a life that is pleasing in the sight of God.
It’s up to you to walk the path of righteousness for yourself.
It’s up to you to choose how to live your days upon the earth, days spent honoring or dishonoring the grace of these moments that God has blessed you with.
There is one thing our current culture has forgotten in their attempts to pass the blame for the how’s, what’s, and why’s of life, and that is individual responsibility. While the attitudes and actions of others can negatively affect people, many don’t have this as their reasoning. Rather, they indulge in unrighteous acts and wrong living, celebrating sinfulness, all the while expressing that it is not their fault. They shift the blame to others as a defense for their reasoning to do wrong.
The above verses show that even when you have a leader or a person of influence in your life who chooses to do right and set a good example, the people still had a choice to make for themselves. The old expression “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t force him to drink,” comes to mind here.
There can be one who shows you the way and the hows of choosing the right path to walk, but it is the individual’s responsibility to choose to walk in it.
We are given choices in this life. And ultimately, we are the ones who will determine our eternal futures based on how we invested in this life given to us; based on which path we have chosen to walk: “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).
It’s up to you. Choose the blessed life (Deuteronomy 28:1-14).
“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:” Deuteronomy 30:19
“Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the Lord’s side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.” Exodus 32:26
“Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day:” Deuteronomy 11:26-27
“See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; In that I command thee this day to love the Lord thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the Lord thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.” Deuteronomy 30:15-16
“And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15
“And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.” 1 Kings 18:21
“For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion.” Ecclesiastes 9:4
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” John 10:10
“For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.” Romans 8:5
Word For Life Says... 