Thanks for joining us for this daily encouragement from our daily bread.

Today's reading was written by Jennifer Benson Schult, and it's titled, Choosing to Honor God.

In the novella, Family Happiness by Leo Tolstoy, main characters Sergei and Masha meet when Masha is young

and impressionable.

Sergei is an older, well-traveled businessman who understands the world beyond the rural

setting where Masha lives. The two fall in love and marry. They settle in the countryside,

but Masha becomes bored with her surroundings.

Sergei, who adores her, arranges a trip to St. Petersburg.

There, Masha's beauty and charm bring her instant popularity.

Just as the couple is about to return home, a prince arrives in town wanting to meet her.

Sergei knows he can force Masha to leave with him, but he lets her make the decision.

She chooses to stay, and her betrayal breaks his heart.

Like Sergei, God will never force us to be faithful to him because he loves us. He lets us choose for or

against him. Our first choice for him happens when we receive his son, Jesus Christ, as the

sacrifice for our sin. After that, we have a lifetime of decisions to make. Will we choose

faithfulness to God as His Spirit guides us or let the

world entice us? David's life wasn't perfect, but he often wrote about keeping the ways of the Lord

and the good outcomes that came from doing so. When our choices honor God, we can experience the blessing David described. To the faithful,

God shows himself faithful. Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Psalm 18, verses 20 through 27.

The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands,

he has rewarded me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord. I am not guilty of turning from my God.

All his laws are before me.

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