But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
Joshua 24:15
Driving home from Virginia on a Sunday afternoon with my youngest daughter, we stopped at Subway. Hopeful…and pretty darn hungry… I scoped the special ‘sub of the day’ chart. Sunday’s special? Tuna.
Bleh. At any price.
I asked the sandwich artist behind the glass counter build a sub that suited my taste.
Reminded me of something said by an acquaintance after learning of parents who’d made the decision to send their previously home educated child to a “real” school…
“You know, home schooling can’t be like the flavor of the day.”
Ahem.
On several occasions, I’ve referenced that same phrase with respect to relationships:
So long as my friend Sally Sue affirms me, she’ll be flavor of the day.
So long as my husband loves me well, he’ll be flavor of the day.
So long as my children rise up and call me blessed or keep silent about what else they lack, they’ll be flavor of the day.
So long as my church plays my preferred worship songs, it’ll be flavor of the day.
So long as my neighbor keeps his dog quiet and off my property, he’ll be flavor of the day.
Basically, if I like you, you’ll become top choice on my menu.
Perhaps I relate to God that way, too. Depending on my mindset or what my flesh might crave on any given day, He’s not always my top choice. His demands might not suit my taste.
But I remain His choice because He is faithful. Times when my attitude toward Him and His purposes sinks to the level of a tuna sub, He always chooses and delights in me. His love letter reads thus:
As for Me, I choose you, _______________ (insert name here).
Love always,
God.
And His message doesn’t come all choppy and encrypted like, “lysm”, which, when deciphered (with the aid of the nearest adolescent one can snag), says ‘Love you so much’ 🙁 )
[bctt tweet=”His love was and is demonstrated on the cross (Romans 5:8).” username=”MaryAFelkins”]
When I make up my mind to be devoted to God and He tells me the cost, what might I say? (Oswald Chambers) Because when Jesus told the rich young ruler that the cost to follow Him meant he’d have to sell everything he had and give to the poor, he became very sad (Luke 18:22-23). The guy just didn’t like that flavor.
So on those ‘tuna sub’ kinda days and seasons of life, I need to take my eyes off the menu and fix them back on God Who remains sovereign over all I find distasteful and is using circumstances to change my sinful palate.
Taste and see that the Lord is good. Psalm 34:8a