Earlier in the month I shared with you that my mandate from the LORD for 2024 was to consciously and intentionally accept Him everyday; and almost everyday of this year so far, I hear or read something that reminds me of this mandate. For example, on January 6th, my daughter’s bible devotion was titled “choose” and the message was very interesting. The scripture was from Judges 21:25

In those days Israel had no king; all the people did whatever seemed right in their own eyes.

Judges 21:25 NLT

The devotional’s author suggested that the cliches “follow your truth” and “you do you” are not new at all! In fact rewind a few thousand years and the Israelites were living the “you do you ” life! Everyone followed their own truth and it was a godless and debased time in the history of the Israelites. Sounds familiar? Let’s fast forward back to 2024.

Yesterday my daily bible readings led me to the book of Isaiah, Chapter 1 to be precise, and here we hear God speaking to the Israelites about their choices. In their actions, words, thoughts, worship, service, they had rejected God everyday and God was telling them He was tired of being rejected! He was lamenting over Israel’s choosing to continue in their own waywardness and rebellion. They had turned their backs on the LORD (vs. 4). And their lives were a sight for sore eyes: they were physically, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually battered. As scripture described it, their heads were injured and their hearts were sick (vs. 5-6) and their worship which they thought might bring them closer to God rather became detestable to Him. The simple reason was this: they continued to reject God. Just before year 2023 ended, I heard a preacher say this, “If you keep saying “NO” to God and continue to reject Him, one of these days God will accept your NO and visit His judgment on you”. And guess what, that is exactly what God is saying to the Israelites in Isaiah Chapter 1:15. He says:

“When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look. Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen…”

Isaiah 1:15 NLT

But all is not lost for rebellious Israel and neither is it for us today. Our Redeeming God offers a solution. “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool…” (Isaiah 1:18 NLT). But there is a caveat: We have to choose to accept Him and everything He offers! Do you feel beaten down and battered by life? Are your prayers appearing to not reach God’s ears? God wants to settle you! But first start with some self-reflection, is there something that you need to settle with God? In what areas of your life are you rejecting Him? One of the ways we reject God is by being so busy with the hustle and bustle of life that we leave little to no room for God’s presence or power in our lives. Isaiah 5:12 captures this so aptly:

They furnish wine and lovely music at their grand parties- lyre and harp, tambourine and flute- but they never think about the LORD or notice what he is doing.

Isaiah 5:12 NLT

When it comes to accepting God, I have a lot to learn and given my mandate for the year, I am sure I am going to learn a lot about this. If you are further along on the journey of what it means to accept and choose Jesus everyday or if God is teaching you something about this in your daily walk with Him, please feel free to share with me, leave a comment, I am excited to learn from you. This year I plan to be intentional about thinking about God every day and to notice what He is doing in my life, among the people in my sphere of influence, and in the world at large. I want to pay attention to what God is saying and requiring of me. That is one of the ways I want to accept Him each day. How? I will engage with my readings each day and anticipate that God wants to tell me something from His word. I will pose questions to God as I read my bible and actively listen for answers throughout the day. I will not hesitate to pray for the things God lays on my heart or if people request prayer of me and excitedly anticipate God’s move in my life and in those of the people I pray for.

P.S. For those of you who are curious about my daily bible reading plan, I use the Olive Tree Bible app on my phone and this year I am following the 52-week bible plan, “A different Genre Each Day”. If you are looking for a reading partner, feel free to join me on this reading journey.