Be careful to do as the LORD your God has commanded; you are not to turn aside to the right or to the left. Follow the whole instruction the LORD your God has commanded you, so that you may live, prosper, and have a long life in the land you will possess.  Deuteronomy 5:32-33 HCSB

I can recall being a teenager and being anxious to get out on my own and do things my way.  Looking back on that time, in all honesty,   is when I made some mistakes, huge mistakes actually.  My parents had my best interest at heart, but I was so busy trying to be independent, I didn’t always understand that.

God is very clearly telling Moses here that if the Israelites, His chosen people, will live their lives as God commands them to do they will live and prosper. In Jeremiah 29:11 God tells the people, through the prophet Jeremiah, “For I know the plans I have for you”-this is the LORD’s declaration-“plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”  God wants good things for us.  He wants to bless us.

God wants to keep us safe. Psalm 91 promises us that if we choose to abide in God’s shelter that He will protect us.  In verse 4 He tells us that His faithfulness will be like a protective shield. In verse 11 he tells us that He will give His angels orders concerning us, to protect us in all our ways.

He wants to give us victory over our enemies. Isaiah 54:17 tells us that no weapon formed against us will succeed, we will be able to refuse any accusation raised against us in court. God declares that this is our heritage as His servants and that we receive righteousness from Him.

God wants to bless us financially, Malachi 3:10 tells us that if we will return a 10th of what he blesses us with that he will open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing for us too great to measure.

Now all of that sounds good, right? We want to feel safe and secure.  We want to feel safe physically, spiritually and financially.  We want protection from our enemies, right. We want to live the good life and be prosperous. We can have all of this if we do what today’s scripture passage tells us to do. It gives very explicit instructions, beginning with, “Be careful”.  Be very careful about what comes out of your mouth. We will give an account for every word spoken (Matthew 12:36-37).  We will give an account of our behavior and our actions before God (Romans 14:12).

Now some think that this may never happen or they are just worried about the here and now and unconcerned about something they think may be years away. So let’s talk about the here and now. If you want to be protected, prosperous and victorious in your life, here on earth, you must choose to serve the LORD. You must love Him with your whole heart, with all you’ve got.  You must obey His commandments and not turn aside. You must trust in Him.

Hindsight is always 20/20. There were things that my parents wanted me to do with my life that I didn’t do. Looking back, I think about how much better off I would have been had I listened. My parents wanted the best possible life for me. It’s too late to go back and do some of the things that my parents wanted me to do. But, I have learned that my heavenly father wants the best possible life for me also. Fortunately, I discovered this before it was too late.  God wants good things for you. He wants you to have a good life, but you must come to Him and receive Him in order to receive the love, salvation, protection and prosperity that He offers. You must have faith in Him and trust in Him.

You must surrender and submit. I struggled with that for a long time. We are taught that weak people submit and surrender. If we are strong, we stand up and fight, right? If we are smart, we submit to God and let Him fight for us. The best decision I ever made in my life was to stop trying to do things my way. When I decided to do things His way, he blessed me more than I deserve and more than I could ever imagine. I still have trials and tribulations from time to time, but He brings me through the fire without me even smelling like smoke. He takes good care of me.

If you haven’t surrendered and submitted your life to God, you have no idea what you are missing. Why not do that today? There is no better time than the present, trust me.  Live your life His way, obey His commands and live under His love, mercy, salvation, protection, and in the victory that He gives us.

Have a great day!