The Choice Is Ours
Scripture: Joshua 24:15; Proverbs 3:5-6; Psalm 37:24-25
The title of my message this morning is “the Choice Is Ours.” Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can't – you're right.” I personally believe he came to this conclusion after reading the first part of verse seven from Proverbs chapter twenty-three. It says, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he…..” (Proverbs 23:7a) In this message I want us to understand that the choice is ours as it relates to how we think about our situations which determines our responses to them.
There was an Austrian Holocaust survivor named Dr. Viktor Frankl. He was a neurologist, psychiatrist and author of the book titled “Man's Search for Meaning.” This book was based on his experiences in various Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Dr. Frankl described his psychotherapeutic method, which involved “identifying a purpose in life to feel positive about and then immersively imagining that outcome.” He said the way a prisoner imagined the future affected his longevity. He also identified three psychological reactions that all of the inmates experienced to one degree or another: (1) shock during the initial admission phase to the camp, (2) apathy after becoming accustomed to camp existence, in which the inmate values only that which helps himself and his friends survive, and (3) reactions of depersonalization, moral deformity, bitterness, and disillusionment if he survives and is liberated.
He concluded that the meaning of life is found in every moment of living; life never ceases to have meaning, even in suffering and death. He also concluded from his experience that a prisoner's psychological reactions are not solely the result of the conditions of his life, but also from the freedom of choice he always has even in severe suffering. The inner hold a prisoner has on his spiritual self relies on having a hope in the future, and that once a prisoner loses that hope, he is doomed. One of his most famous saying was “The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to what you do to me. The last of one’s freedoms is to choose one’s attitude in any given circumstance.” I am not sure if all of his conclusions are accurate as it relates to all Holocaust victims and survivors and likewise I am not advocating his teachings. But I wanted to introduce this message to you this morning with what he said because I do believe it is applicable to what we will witness in 2021.
As we enter a new year, we have the opportunity to reflect on 2020. There were a lot of things that went wrong in 2020 but there were also some things that went right. In our personal life we made some good choices and we might have made some poor choices. For what it’s worth, we can now look back on our choices and hope 2021 will be better. As we reflect on 2020, we cannot look back and not think about how our lives changed due to Covid-19 and the long term impact of that pandemic. People lost their lives in 2020. As a matter of record, more people died in the U.S. in 2020 than in any other single year in our history and it was due partly to the pandemic. All of those deaths affected un-told families and friends. People are entering 2021 wondering what normal will look like for them.
As I thought about this first message for 2021, I thought about what Dr. Frankl said that all of the prisoners experienced in the camps to some degree or another. First they experience shock during the initial admission phase to the camp. I want you to think back to last March when our country went on into lockdown. People were shocked, angry and afraid. This was a first in our lifetime and no one knew what to expect. You could not purchase personal protective equipment such as face masks as all the stores were sold out and the national stockpile was insufficient for the country’s needs. There was shock and dismay. Then as we got through the first few months, people began to demonstrate apathy after becoming accustomed to existing in a pandemic. People began to focus on what was in their best interest in order for them to survive. Some exhibited continued fear and loneliness and after being afraid and alone for an extended period of time the fear turned into anger and frustration. Jobs were lost and some believed their personal freedoms were under attack. Now we are approaching the third phase that Dr. Frankl described as reactions of “depersonalization, moral deformity, bitterness, and disillusionment for the person who survives and is liberated.” He described how the camps changed a prisoner’s mental health as seen by the bitterness and disillusionment that they faced when they were liberated. He described the feelings people had when they returned home and there was no one to greet them. The hope of returning home to their families, which sustained them in the camp, was now lost because everyone was gone. I want you to see this because while the pandemic might not have taken your loved one, there are many household where this is not true.
As we enter 2021 and the possibility that the pandemic will be over, we must deal with the scars that it caused. We must continue to deal with the mental attacks that caused prolonged fear which manifests as anger and frustration. And for many, once we come to the other side, we must redefine what will be normal for us: a life without masks; being able to return to Church; going to the movies; freely eating at restaurants; and having large family gatherings. All of these are great, but for some they will be lacking a loved one. This cannot be overlooked in our Churches and in our relationships. All of us have suffered, but not all of us have suffered the same. That understanding brings me to the quote from Dr. Frankl. He said, “The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to what you do to me. The last of one’s freedoms is to choose one’s attitude in any given circumstance.” I want you to think about his saying in another way. He was talking about the Nazi soldiers and how they demeaned the prisoners. I want you to think of this as the world around us. How we choose to respond to the world in 2021 is totally up to us. We can carry our baggage from 2020 into 2021, or we can choose a different way.
When Joshua was giving his farewell address as he was preparing to die, he remembered everything that the Children of Israel had done since they left Egypt. He knew of their potential to turn from the Lord after their own wicked ways. As he prepared to make his last transition, he said to the people “If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the river, or the gods of the Ammorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15) Joshua asked the people to make a choice as to who they would serve – it was up to them. But even on his deathbed, he proclaimed that he and his house would continue to serve the Lord. How could he make such a statement on his deathbed? Joshua had faith that his family would not turn from following God even after his death. He was so certain that he made the proclamation while on his death bed. As we enter 2021 I am asking you, who will you serve this year? In 2020 we witnessed the faith of some being shattered because of what was happening around them. We witnessed Churches closing their door not to reopen because of what was happening around them. And we might just witness the non-return of members coming back to live worship because they have found it very convenient to stay at home and hear the Word from the comforts of their homes. But who will you serve and as you consider that question, how will you respond to 2021?
When I am constantly getting on one of my siblings nerves she tells me that I am about to make “Clarice” come out. Clarice is her alter ego who tells it like it is especially when someone is getting on her nerves. Clarice is the one who will not hold back on speaking what the person would normally withhold inside. All of us have some “Clarice” within us – but the fact we do not let her loose speaks to our ability to make a choice. We can respond to a situation thoughtfully or we can react immediately to it. When we “respond” with forethought we consider what has happened and think through what our response should be. However, when we have an immediate reaction to something, that reaction is based on the core of who we are within. In a perfect world our immediate reaction would mimic that of our thoughtful one but that is not always the case. What Joshua was asking of the people was that their response to every situation they faced would be the same – they would rely on and continue to serve God.
As we enter 2021, I want to give you a few choices to consider as your foundation for this New Year. Dr. Frankl said that how a prisoner imagined their future impacted his longevity. What he was talking about was how a person utilized hope. What were they hoping for that sustained them? Hope is a choice. Either we choose to have it or we choose to give in to what we see and hear. It’s all about our choice and the choice is ours. As we start this New Year, make the choice to do the following:
First: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not unto your own understanding. 6In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6) Before all else, put your trust in the Lord. Not in man; your bank account; retirement fund, etc. Put your trust in God and when you face the 2021 situations that will try and tear you down, choose to respond from a place of knowing that God has you and He will see you through each and every one of them.
Next: After firmly placing your trust in God, know that “Though he falls, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholds him with his hand. 25I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his offspring begging bread.” (Psalm 37:24-25) When you put your trust in the Lord and allow Him to direct your steps (your responses), then believe that He has your back. If you fall down (things get tough) you will not stay down (cast out, walked upon) because God has you in His hand. Believe it! Quote what David said in verse twenty-five, “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his offspring begging bread.”
Then: Believe “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) No matter what you face, do you believe that it will work out to your good? I was laid off for the first time in my career in 2014. While I professed what I knew that God would take care of me and my family, things were hard and the mental attacks were great. But I knew it would work out. Now six years later I am thinking about retirement. I would not be in the position I am today – considering retirement in the next 1-2 years if I hadn’t gotten laid off in 2014. What changed my projection? After I was laid off I became aggressive in saving for retirement so that if
I was ever laid off again we would be okay. That was a Spirit led decision that was made “after” the traumatic experience of being laid off. Losing my job in 2014 worked to my good as it has for so many others. Some people temporarily made more money last year due to the stimulus package than they would have made had the pandemic never existed. Why? It was the way it worked out and I am happy for them. Do you believe that your situation, as bad as it is, will work out for you good? I do!
“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8) What will you spend your 2021 thinking about? Will you spend it thinking about everything that you lost in 2020? Will you spend it thinking about the troubles on your jobs and the promotions you did not receive through the years? Will you spend it thinking about death – those who have gone on before you or even your own? Will you spend it thinking about all of your regrets? Or will you spend your mental energy thinking about what is true – the truth that God loves you and is sustaining you? Will you spend it thinking about the truth that when you leave this earth you will be forever in His presence? Will you spend it thinking those things that are honest, just, pure, lovely and of a good report (blessings)? These things give hope while dwelling on the others remove it.
We can enter this year with hope – believing that what has been will not continue to be. Or we can enter it with a sense of dread – that nothing will change and this year will be even harder than last year. The choice is ours. How we choose to begin this year mentally will have a great impact on how we go through this year. How we begin will often be similar to how we end it as it relates to our thinking. Only we can change our thinking. Only we can renew our minds and cause it to shift from the negative to the positive, from a no hope future to one with endless possibilities. And let me remind you – 2020 is now our past. We can hold on to it and drag all of its reminders into 2021 or we can let it go. It’s our choice to make New Light and this is one that I can only make for myself. You have to make yours. We will see God move in our lives this year.
Until next time, “The Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
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