Deuteronomy 30:11-16A
Moses told the people – This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you, and it is not beyond your reach. It is not kept in heaven, so distant that you must ask,
‘Who will go up to heaven and bring it down so we can hear it and obey?’ It is not kept beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, ‘Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear it and obey?’ No, the message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.
Now listen!
Today I am giving you a choice between life and death, between prosperity and disaster. For I command you this day to love the Lord your God and to keep his commands, decrees, and regulations by walking in his ways.
The Gift of Choice
I came into the world without being asked,
And when the time for dying comes
I shall not be consulted;
But between the boundaries of birth and death
Lies the dominion of Choice:
To be a doer or a dreamer,
To be a lifter or a leaner.
To speak out or remain silent,
To extend a hand in friendship
Or to look the other way:
To feel the sufferings of others
Or to be callous and insensitive.
These are the choices.
It is in the choosing
That my measure as a person
Is determined.