Make A Wise Choice

12 Feb

If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you;
if you trust in God, you too shall live;
he has set before you fire and water
to whichever you choose, stretch forth your hand.
Before man are life and death, good and evil,
whichever he chooses shall be given him.  (Sir 15:15-17)

One of the scenes that I vividly remember from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was the choice that Jones had to make regarding which cup was the Holy Grail.  It was said that drinking from the cup of Christ would bring healing and long.  The enemy got to an array of cups before Jones.  A Knight told him to choose wisely.  The enemy chose a cup that he was sure would be the Grail, dipped it into water, drank from it, and died immediately.

The response of the Knight?  “He chose poorly.”

We do not like to think about it and we do not like to hear it; however, every one of our choices have consequences.  If we choose poorly, our consequences will be disastrous.  If we choose wisely, our consequences will be good.

That is what we hear in today’s first reading from the Book of Sirach.  “If you choose you can keep the commandments, they will save you.”  We all want to be saved, do we not?  You would think, then, that our choices would always be the right choices.

That is not so, however, because we live in a world steeped in sin.  Because of that, there are a myriad of choices available to us.  Some look absolutely wretched and we shy away from them.  Some choices, on the other hand, look to be very good.  It is only after we have chosen them that we find out they are bad and lead us the wrong way.

The only way to increase our chances of choosing wisely is to make sure that we stay as close to the Lord as possible.  When we are confronted with important choices, we should pray about them first.  In prayer, we should ask the Lord to help us make the right choice.  God is always there and is more than willing to help us.  We need to take the time to ask Him for His aid.

Between us are life and death, good and evil.  What will be your choice this day?

FAITH ACTION:  Review some of the important choices that you have made recently.  Were they made taking the commandments of God into consideration?  If not, rethink your choices.