TODAY IS…

a perfect day to take no chances.

“She defiled herself with immorality and gave no thought to her future. Now she lies in the gutter with no one to lift her out. ‘Lord, see my misery,’ she cries. ‘The enemy has triumphed.’”  Lamentations 1:9 NLT

Jeremiah was writing about Jerusalem’s refusal to listen and ‘her’ insistence on giving in to immorality and sin. The warnings were all given, repeatedly, but they were ignored. The temptation of sin proved too great and all of those who chose to ignore God’s warnings paid the price.

It is important that each one of us heed God’s warnings and turn our backs on immorality and sinful pleasures. Perhaps we have crossed the line once; twice; three times or more, and gotten away with it. No one said the price that we would pay for our behavior would be paid immediately.

But it will be paid.

Sometimes the freedom to do whatever we want becomes the desire to do everything, regardless of the consequences. In succumbing to those desires, we allow ourselves to become slaves to sin, and when we become salves to sin, we can no longer be servants to the Lord. When our focus is taken off of God, and placed on things we know are in direct conflict with what we have been taught, then we stop living in Christ.

“No one who lives in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him.” (1 John 3:6 NIV).

None of us wants to pay the price for the pleasures of sin that Jerusalem paid. God has proven His patience time and time again, but it is not wise for any of us to continue to test it. The Lord has His limits and we do not want to push beyond them until we are “in the gutter” with no one to lift us out.

Take no chances. Minimize your risks. Follow the Word of God diligently and faithfully. If you stumble, God will surely help you to regain your footing.

But let there be no mistake.

If you decide to ignore the Word of God and pursue immorality and sin, there will be a price to pay. It is best to not chance finding out what it is.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson