Good morning,

Our devotion for today comes from Psalm 119:4 "You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed." 

Wherever you are today, meditate on this; why did God give us a list of rules to follow?  Why is the Bible so full of dos and don'ts?  Is He some kind of big egomaniac who created us so that He would have someone to order around?

Look at it this way.  Why doesn't a mother let her child touch a hot stove?  Why doesn't a father let his kid run out into traffic?  Rules like these don't always make sense to a child, but they are meant to protect a way of ensuring that beloved child's safety and happiness.

Similarly, abiding by the commandments of the One who created us and the universe in which we live should provide heightened levels of protection, fulfillment, peace (both internal and external), and well being.  The quality of our lives is most often a product of our choices.  The problem is that we don't always have the information or perspective we need to make proper choices.  That's precisely why God, who loves us and greatly desires to see us succeed, has given us guidelines to live by.

If you have been viewing the Ten Commandments as the big stick God uses to beat His creation into submission, it may be time to shift your paradigm or change your perspective.  God is for you, not against you!
    

Have a blessed obedient day!

Your brother in Christ,
J. H. Flakes, III