DAY 14

THE NARROW WAY

NIKKI CATHERINCCHIA, TEACHING PASTOR

You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.

—Matthew 7:13–14

“Choose Life!” For decades those two words have represented the powerful notion that life matters most. Each and every person, created in the image of God for a plan and a purpose that gives us intrinsic value in the mosaic known as humanity. Whether “Choose Life” is used as a campaign to champion suicide prevention in Great Britain in the 1980s or the banner for those advocating for the unborn here in the United States since Roe V Wade made abortion legal in our country in 1973, the premise is the same... human life matters. And while that is absolutely true, I imagine for God the slogan “Choose Life” means something even greater than breath in our lungs and a beating heart. To truly choose the fullness of life one must choose God, Himself. In John’s Gospel Jesus is so very clear on this topic when He proclaims,

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. —John 14:6

Choosing life, abundantly, here and now and for all eternity is not affiliating yourself with a cause; it’s about choosing a person, Jesus Christ.

This summer I have spent many hours alone on the golf course. Well, I wasn’t completely alone. It was me, worship music, and Jesus. As I spent early mornings outdoors, playing a little sport and worshiping my Savior, the Holy Spirit kept drawing me to the song “The Narrow Way” by Steffany Gretzinger. There is a lyric in the song that absolutely captured my heart. I will walk the narrow way. The only road that will lead to life. I will stay the narrow way. To see the face of the One I love. In these words we see the reflection of Jesus’ words in the Gospel of Matthew that tells us the road to hell and destruction is wide and many will choose it. However, the gateway to life is narrow and very few will find it. In Jesus’ own words. we are all awakened to a powerful reality; we must all make a choice about life. Yet, Jesus is not talking about making a stance concerning suicide or abortion. He is reminding us of the human condition. That dead in our sin, we are on a pathway propelling us toward destruction, death, and eternal separation from God. That when we choose sin we are, in fact, choosing death. For a brief moment, while sin can seem exciting, exhilarating, and even fun, the high never lasts very long. And so often, like any other drug, sin becomes addictive leaving a wake of destruction and its user chasing the next high. This is the wide road Jesus speaks of that so many choose to take. The road that often leaves its victims empty, anxious, confused, discontent, and depressed.

But here is the beauty of having a choice; there is more than one option. We do not have to take the wide road, the road full of worldly ideologies and philosophies, the road that deceives us. We have another option, and His name is Jesus. He leads us on the narrow way to life. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. He is our strength when we weather a difficult season. He is our courage when we face the unknown. He is our comfort that eases the pain and ache of even the most wounded heart. He is the truth in a world full of lies, and He is the Savior that washes us clean of all sin so that we can stand before His Father, beautiful and radiant. We are His beloved, and when we choose the narrow way, when we choose life, we give Him our love in return. This is the very epitome of choosing life.

Today and everyday we face the new dawn with a choice; we can choose to let sin and death govern our day, or we can choose Jesus and walk in the fullness of life. Make no mistake, every person with a heartbeat matters to God. They are a soul created in the image of their Creator. In each of us resides a plan and purpose that was on the heart and mind of our God before He created the world. We must know that our God longs for us to choose life, to choose Him. Allowing His Holy Spirit to source and guide all of our days. To travel the narrow road so that we might see the face of the One we love here and now and for all eternity. The choice is ours; what will you choose today?

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, today I choose life. I choose to stay on the narrow road to see the face of the One I love. Jesus, You are the way, the truth, and the life and my hope rests in You. Holy Spirit, I surrender full control of my day and life to You. Keep me from wandering from the truth of life. May death and sin hold no appeal to me as I choose to walk in the fullness of life to bring honor and glory to my Savior, Jesus Christ. In His precious name I pray, amen.