Many times and in many ways, I have thought about how my CHOICES make my life happy or sad. In my post in the forum at Koinonia Institute, I was asked “When did Jesus “choose” you? Tell us something about your experience and walk with God.” This is what I said:

Jesus did indeed CHOOSE me before He created the world. My family is filled with generations of godly men and women serving Christ by making good CHOICES. For that, I myself am richly blessed. My mother was especially instrumental in bringing me to a place in my life that I began to CHOOSE to “love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:36)

In 1984, pregnant with my second child, I reached the end of my struggle to live without allowing Jesus into EVERY aspect of my life. I was hopeless and helpless but God was faithful. My mom led me in a prayer to ask Jesus to give me her faith and her hope and, most important to me, a willingness to serve Him with my whole life. I had been unwilling up to this point to trust Jesus completely, although intellectually I had acknowledged Him as my Lord and Savior. On that day, I CHOSE Him.

Like David, I heard the Lord say to me, “CHOOSE for yourself,…” (1 Chronicles 21:11 NKJV) And like David, I said,  “I am in great distress. Please let me fall into the hand of the LORD, for His mercies are very great…” (1 Chronicles 21:13 NKJV) [emphasis added]

My journey to joy began with my CHOICE to pray for Jesus to make me Willing to BE Willing to let Him live through me. There have been many milestones, many rocks, piled on my altar to Him so that I could come back to that place and remember the things I learned. But by FAR the BIGGEST ROCK is the one where I laid down FIRST- that Willing to BE Willing rock so that Jesus could then be my ROCK.

And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, CHOOSE for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. (Joshua 24:15 NKJV) [emphasis added]

Sincerely, Julie Ashley