The ripple effect...

Image courtesy of zirconicusso

"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse.  So choose life, in order that you may live, you and your descendants."--Deuteronomy 30:19.  Moses, continuing on about the choice laid before the people to obey God's commands.  One thing we can glean from this verse is that the choice made can cause a ripple effect to other generations. 

The ripple effect.  The image above should be a familiar one to all of us.  When an object is dropped in water, it produces a ripple that spreads out over a certain distance in every direction.  One disturbance on the surface of the water disturbs the whole body.  So how does the ripple effect connect to our obedience to God?

The ripple effect.  Notice that Moses tells the people to choose life or obey God not only so that the individual might live but also their descendants after them.  

The ripple effect.  Take a moment to consider what happens in society.  More often than not, the children will take after their parents.  This of course can be a good thing.  However, it can also be a bad thing depending on the choices the parents make as the children are growing up.  What the parents do causes a ripple effect and this can be good but it can also be bad.  Again depending on the choice. 

The ripple effect.  The same is true with us as Christians. And here is what I mean.  Many of my friends will attest to the fact that I am a huge preacher of example when it comes to our faith. What we as Christians need to understand is that when we CHOOSE to disobey God, it is not only our soul we are putting in danger.  Whether we realize it or not, someone else, especially someone from the next generation is ALWAYS watching and looking to our example.  Point is if there is one thing God hates just as much as sin, it is one one person causes another to sin.  Our disobedience to God can cause a ripple effect.

The ripple effect.  But we must not be discouraged because on the flip side of this is the fact that our OBEDIENCE to God can also cause a ripple effect.  Simply making the choice to obey God rather than men will encourage others to do the same and through your one choice, you can make all the difference in the kingdom of God. 

So my encouragement to you is this.  If you haven't already, take some time to find someone that is part of the next generation and make it a point to set a godly example for that person as well as encouraging them to obey God rather than men and point them towards Christ.  In closing, we must remember the words of Paul to Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:12 "...but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity show yourself an example of those who believe."

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! PRAY ABOUT IT! LOVE Y'ALL! GOD BLESS!