Choices We’ve Made

Photo courtesy O'Reilly Lewis

 There is a way that seems right to a person, but its end is the way to death. – Proverbs 14:12 (NRSVUE)

We all make choices every day, several times a day. Some of those choices are innocuous but some can be detrimental, to ourselves and to others. Sometimes choices we’ve made place an entire community under siege.

At the time the choice seemed right but afterwards, when reality hits, and we end up in direful circumstances, we realize that it wasn’t the right choice after all and regret soon sets in.

Has this ever happened to you?

You’ve made a conscious choice, and now you are in bondage to a life-changing situation and cannot see a way out. Penitent and pensive, you’re wondering if God will ever rescue you from the calamitous situation that has ensued because of the choice or choices you’ve made.

As time goes on, you begin to truly realize the gravity of your choice, as it adversely impacts not just your own life but the lives of a community of people; your choice has placed everyone in desperate need of saving.

There’s nothing you can do to change the result; you just have to live as best as you are able under the circumstances because the solution to life’s problems does not always lie in changing your circumstances.

There are lessons to be learnt through the choices we’ve made.

God will leave us in the mess we’ve made so that, we might come to grips with who He is and help us to recognize His involvement in our lives.

Understand that all areas of our life, including our spiritual life, is impacted by the choices we’ve made. God gives us an opportunity to choose Him and His way.

God gave the sojourning Israelites opportunities to do exactly that, but they believed that they were making the right choice by not choosing Him and His way. And how did that turn out for them?

Our choices remove our connection to God, not on His part but on ours, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go (Joshua 1:9). We are the ones who need to turn back to Him. God wants to rescue us, and He can provide a way of escape.

We may be struggling with choices we’ve made, or choices made by others.

We may be going through painful life situations of our own making.

We may have inadvertently invited suffering to play a role in our own lives and in the lives of countless others.

We may even be looking for someone to blame for the choices we’ve made but our choices are our responsibility.

God has done so much for us that the wrong choices we’ve made were tantamount to spitting in Jesus’ face, striking Him and slapping Him (Matthew 26:67) all over again.

So, how can we make things right, how will things change and how will this change take place?

We must play a part, but it is God who is our solution, He is our only solution.

The very first step involves us. This change starts with us and in us through repentance. Wherever we are, we need to turn to the cross.

Beloved, see yourself as being dead to the power of sin and alive for God through Christ Jesus (Romans 6:11 ERV).

 Don’t change yourself to be like the people of this world, but let God change you inside with a new way of thinking. Then you will be able to understand and accept what God wants for you. You will be able to know what is good and pleasing to him and what is perfect. (Romans 12:2 ERV).

You and I need to renew our minds, our thinking, our belief system, and be transformed on a daily basis and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:24 ESV).

As children of God, we need to mirror the God within us rather than masquerade for the world around us.

Jesus Christ rescued and redeemed us so that we would make the right choices so that its end is not the way to our deaths, spiritual or otherwise.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Choices We’ve Made” ©2026 May 5, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unregenerate Church Members

 

Speaking to a man in his early thirties, he said something I thought was quite telling. He said to me that he was ardently attending church when one Sunday morning while in church, it dawned on him that the only reason he was there was because of family ties and tradition. He said for him church attendance had become robotic; he was physically present but spiritually absent.

Baptized as an infant, Sunday School as a toddler until he was a pre-teen, confirmed as a teenager, gave his life to Christ somewhere in his early twenties but from then until now, nothing. Going to church by rote but not living his life in Christ. He was an unregenerate church member.

It may surprise you to know that our churches are filled with unregenerate members. Persons who attend religiously but whose lives have gone nowhere spiritually – in church but far away from Christ.

For them, church has become more of a social gathering place than a place of repentance, conversion, and discipleship. They are members who have been over-churched and under-reached.

Mind you, these are in no way “bad” people, they have simply continued to be lost; they spoke the words of acceptance but never made an honest commitment to follow Christ, they did not go on to work out their salvation, they have never truly placed their faith in Christ or bothered to establish a personal relationship with Him and though they attend church regularly and are registered members, they aren’t Christians.

Even though they will make a show of being religious, their religion won't be real. (2 Timothy 3:5 CEV)

The thing is, church membership is not salvation. Being devoted in service and faithful in attendance cannot save you. Your contrived good works (see Isaiah 64:6) is not the same as good works resulting from salvation (see Ephesians 2:10).

Unregenerate church members are not “born again”, “reborn from above” or “reborn”, they are what theologians call unsaved members of the church.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life]. (2 Corinthians 5:17 AMP)

Some unregenerate church members cannot be blamed for their condition, as they have been deluded into believing that they are Christians via good works concept sermons or not receiving a proper understanding of the Gospel or never hearing a presentation of the Gospel that was clear. They have not been given the adequate spiritual guidance to properly lead them in the way they should go and no one in leadership ever asked them any pertinent questions concerning their beliefs and faith in Christ.

While others have deluded themselves by believing that church membership meant being a Christian or by confusing certain aspects of church ministry with salvation or by convincing themselves that church attendance was sufficient and nothing else was necessary.

Beloved, we cannot afford to conduct our spiritual lives on our own. Being a member of a church is supposed to be being a member of a family, and no one wants to see their family member go astray. So, why are we, as Christians, so reluctant to share our faith with our brothers and sisters in Christ?

You may just be the one to help unregenerate church members escape their state by sharing Christ with them.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Unregenerate Church Members” ©2026 May 4, 2026

Passing Judgment

 

All too often, we don’t take the time to listen or observe or find out the facts of a situation or the truth about a person, instead we make snap judgments.

Passing judgment on others seems to be the order of the day and that just isn’t fair to them. Apostle Paul needed to address that same problem with the members of the church in Rome. He wrote to them asking,  

Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God – Romans 14:10 (ESV)

That was thousands of years ago and imagine we are still doing the same thing today. I guess, to engage in passing judgment is so ingrained in our “fallen” human nature, that Jesus Himself had cause to say,

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. – Matthew 7:1-2 (NIV)

Jesus makes it quite clear that passing judgment incurs a reciprocal response. What is really required is discernment. You see, there is a difference between judgment and discernment, and even though the Bible uses the word “judge” to mean “condemn”, sometimes it uses “judge” to mean “discern”; it will augur well for us to understand the difference.

For instance, in his first letter to the church at Corinth, the Apostle wrote,

The spiritual person [or person with the Spirit] is able to judge [discern; assess] all things, but no one can judge [discern; assess] him. – 1 Corinthians 2:15 (EXB)

So, “judge” in Romans 14:10 and Matthew 7:1-2 does not carry the same meaning as it does in 1 Corinthians 2:15.

Paul continues in Romans 14:13 (AMPC),

Then let us no more criticize and blame and pass judgment on one another, but rather decide and endeavour never to put a stumbling block or an obstacle or a hindrance in the way of a brother.

Please understand that criticizing, blaming and passing judgment on others impedes their spiritual progress and their faith, and displays spiritual immaturity. Spiritually mature persons do not jump to conclusions, they listen, they observe, they investigate, and they evaluate in order to respond or act in a godly manner. A spiritually growing person always uses discernment; judgment is never their first option.

Too many longstanding church members are too eager to condemn their brothers and sisters. They appear to be versed in placing stumbling blocks, obstacles and hindrances in the way of their fellowman, especially the younger members of the faith. Discernment seems to have eluded them and passing judgment, par for the course.

Passing judgment is not limited to spoken words; disapproval can come in wordless vocalization or a facial expression or eye movements or some other physical gesture.

In people’s normal everyday interactions with each other, it is natural to assess one another but as Christians, we are way too quick to form opinions of each other, and sadly they always lean towards negativity, our judgment meter kicks into overdrive. Those negative opinions can hurt deeply, humiliate, strip persons of their dignity, and dampen their faith, especially when we are wrong.

We habitually base our judgment on face value, strictly on the cover when we haven’t even read the book.

Beloved, no matter how spiritual you may be, you are unable to see anyone’s heart (ref. 1 Samuel 16:7) so, you cannot properly judge anyone and at times you can’t even understand your own behaviour far less someone else’s.

Both Jesus and Apostle Paul spoke plainly about passing judgment – bottom line is, do not judge, stop looking at the speck of dust in your brother’s eye when you have a whole light pole in yours (ref. Luke 6:41).

We must pray for discernment saying, Lord,

I ask that You give me a heart that understands [discerns; listens], so I will know the difference between right and wrong [discern between good and evil].

(ref. 1 Kings 3:9 EXB)

All of us who claim to be Christian, must look past our own prejudices and reach out with authentic love. We are called to be messengers of the Good News, not assigned to be passing judgment on others.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Passing Judgment” ©2026 May 3, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Love yourself

 “Love yourself”, a topic that consists of a myriad of intricacies that we can barely scratch the surface of in this one blog post. But we can give it a little push, a morsel to nibble on as food for thought.

Sadly, there are too many persons in this world who do not love themselves. Christians and non-Christians alike suffer from low self-worth, low self-esteem and practice self-abasement.

As Christians, the truth of who we are is written in the bible and we need to see that truth clearly and conform our lives to it. We need to read it and intentionally embrace what is true about us.

Understand that you are the steward of yourself, and you must remember that stewards are charged with taking care of things that don’t belong to them. You are not your own, you belong to God, His ever-beloved creation.

Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we belong to him; we are his people, we are his flock. (Psalm 100:3 GNT)

The truth is, you are chosen, chosen by God Almighty – His person.

Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3 AMPC)

The truth is, God loves you completely; His love for you is wide, long, high and deep (ref. Ephesians 3:18).

For we are His workmanship [His own master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us]. (Ephesians 2:10 AMPC)

The truth is, you are God’s masterpiece, created inherently and undeniably perfect in His eyes, not sinless perfection, for we are all born of sin, but you are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14).

Now that you know the truth, own it.

Stop comparing yourself to others, for you are unique – there is no one else like you in this entire world, for God lovingly formed your inward parts and knitted you together in your mother’s womb (ref. Psalm 139:13).

Stop writing God’s truth about yourself in pencil and begin to write it down in indelible ink. Stop the negative self-talk and start engaging in conversations with God about you – ask, listen and believe. Read what He says about you in His Word.

You may have been through a lot in this life and you are meant to feel emotions, but you aren’t meant to foster the negative feelings – feel and let them go, hand them over to God – the fear, the hurt, the disappointment, the offence, every negative emotion is not to be owned and nurtured.

They are not a reflection of who you are!

In life you will make mistakes, you will fail sometimes but the shortcomings do not define you, they are not your identity.

You are good enough!

You are who God says you are!

At the core of who you are is the love of God!

Stop hating who you see in the mirror!

Believe the truth of who God says you are, then speak it aloud over and over again until it is embedded in you.

God loves you fiercely so, when you love yourself, you glorify and honour God.

You’ve taken care of everyone else. Ensuring that the spiritual well-being of family, friends, neighbours and strangers is headed in the right direction but neglecting your physical well-being. You are exhausted, weary, overwhelmed by the work. No good to yourself.

Self-love is not self-centeredness; it’s not about bubble baths and massages, of course those are great but those are outward self-care, loving yourself has to do with what’s inside of you. You need to rest, relax and reflect so that you may be restored internally or have you forgotten that God rested after the work of creation.

Beloved, do you truly love yourself? Think about that for a minute. How have you been treating yourself?

Determine to love yourself, you are the only self that you are. Everyday make the choice to love yourself.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Love yourself” ©2026 May 1, 2026

 

 

 

Love your Friends

 

The hardest people to witness to are those whom you know best, the ones that are close to you – family and friends. But what kind of friend would you be if you don’t share your Christian walk with your friends? Friends don’t let friends go to hell.

Reaching out to friends is just as important as your outreach to strangers. You are already in a relationship; the friendship has been long established, and you’ve shared a lot over the years, yet somehow you haven’t shared the message of Christ with them and have not been open about your spiritual journey.

Your desire to help your friends grow in the love and knowledge of Jesus must far outweigh any inconvenience or awkwardness you may encounter. There comes a time when you need to change the conversation, you’ve built the bridge of friendship, now cross it – cross over into a new dimension of the relationship.

Crossing that bridge assists in bridging the gap that your friends may be experiencing between themselves and Jesus; but how are you to know if you don’t venture into that area of their lives?

Jesus said that we must “go” (Matthew 28:19-20) however, many of us prefer persons to “come”, come to us on our terms. But it’s not about us, it’s about their salvation.

No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends. (John 15:13 AMPC)

As followers of Jesus, He calls on us to lay down our lives by not letting selfishness or pride be our guide; we are to be humble, and honour others more than ourselves and not be interested only in our own lives, but care about the lives of others too (ref. Philippians 2:3-4).

You lay down your life by emulating His love, the abiding love of Jesus in you that flows out from your relationship with Him, however, if you are not truly in relationship with Christ, then you won’t be willing to “lay down” your life for your friends.

Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you. [Live in Me, and I will live in you.] Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me. (John 15:4 AMPC)

You are to bear the fruit of love that comes from abiding in Jesus. There’s a song that says, “They will know we are Christians by our love”, love that identifies you as Christian. Can your friends identify you as a follower of Christ by your love?

Christian love is not to be contained within the walls of the church and is certainly not a grand performative gesture to be displayed in front of your fellow church members, it is meant to be an outward expression of genuine love and care and kindness and much more (see 1 Corinthians 13:4-8).

If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal… but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1, 3 NLT)

If you don’t love your friends enough to care about their spiritual well-being by sharing with them the Gospel of Christ, then they would gain nothing and you would have gained nothing.

Beloved, you cannot continue hoping that your friends will somehow “catch” Christianity, like how you “catch” a cold. Give them the same opportunity that was given to you to live their best life ever by becoming a follower of Jesus.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Love your Friends” ©2026 April 30, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tough Love

 

The expression, “tough love”, conjures up certain images in one’s mind. Perhaps you see a drill sergeant hammering the troops under his control into submission.

Spiritually speaking, that’s not what tough love is about; it’s not about displaying a rough, hard-nosed demeanour or forcing Christianity upon your relatives or beating people over the head with your bible.

Apostle Paul says that if a Christian is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help him back onto the right path… (Galatians 6:1 TLB)

Tough love is exhibited in gentleness and self-control which are elements found in the Fruit of the Spirit…

what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection…We find ourselves…not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely. (ref. Galatians 5:22, 23 MSG)

Tough love is displayed when you do what’s best and not what’s easiest for you, in like…

Do not take revenge on others or continue to hate them, but love your neighbors as you love yourself. (Leviticus 19:18 GNT)

And…

But now I tell you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, (Matthew 5:44 GNT)

From a spiritual perspective, exercising tough love is indeed tough to do but if you don’t correct your children, you don’t love them. If you love them, you will be quick to discipline them. (Proverbs 13:24 ERV)

However, decisions have spiritual implications, so before exercising tough love you must pray about it as Proverbs 9:8 (GNT) advises to never correct conceited people; they will hate you for it. But if you correct the wise, they will respect you.

In as much as you may be exercising tough love toward others, remember that choices have consequences so you must be willing to receive the tough love that is meted out to you; Galatians 6:1 says that even as you are leading others back onto the right path, you must keep in mind that next time it might be one of you who is in the wrong.

Tough love is another way to lay the foundation for leading others to Jesus Christ.

Beloved, God shows His love for His children in many ways, and you and I must follow His lead because according to 1 Corinthians 13:8, godly love never fails, it endures forever and that same unfailing love is the reason God Himself exercises tough love from time to time.

For the Lord corrects and disciplines everyone whom He loves, and He punishes, even scourges, every son whom He accepts and welcomes to His heart and cherishes. (Hebrews 12:6 AMPC)

Both experiencing and exercising tough love opens your heart to the lesson it brings. Tough love shifts your perspective when you recognize that it’s not punishment for punishment’s sake but a divine gift to be appreciated, as it cultivates a sense of mindfulness that enriches your spiritual journey.

Amen †

 

Shelley Johnson “Tough Love” ©2026 April 29, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Relational Love

 

I am YAHWEH, your mighty God! I grip your right hand and won’t let you go! I whisper to you: ‘Don’t be afraid; I am here to help you!’ – Isaiah 41:13 (TPT)

Our best example of relational love is experienced from being in relationship with God – Father, Son and Spirit.

Relational love speaks of connection. God says that He grips our right hand and He won’t let go. Now that is some connection. Our connection to God is of utmost importance and should be mirrored in our connection to and relationships with others.

We need to invite God into all the relationships we’re already in and those we are about to enter. You see, inviting God into our relational dynamics, allows us to cultivate healthy connections grounded in mutual respect and understanding.

That “getting along together and understanding of each other” connection is vital in promoting free and open communication. It is that freedom and openness that is the key to relationships that thrive.

Relational love is the embodiment of God’s love and must be present in our relations with others.

Relational love empowers us to respond to situations with intention rather than reacting impulsively based purely upon an emotional knee-jerk.

Too often love is lacking when we relate to others.

When “love” is laced with manipulation and is demanding in a puffed-up way, it’s not relational love.

When “love” is exhausting and emotionally draining, it’s not relational love.

When “love” is driven by envy or jealousy, it’s not relational love.

There is no deceit, paranoia, betrayal and confusion in love; if there is then it’s not relational love.

When “love” is unsafe, it’s not relational love.

When “love” is weaponized, it’s not relational love.

When “love” is physically, emotionally or verbally abusive, that’s abuse masquerading as love and that love is not love at all.

When “love” is control disguised as care, it’s not relational love.

Relational love is not the possibility of love; it is authentic love. It is love that is gentle, kind, giving, forgiving, nurturing, thoughtful, honest, helpful, safe, caring, trustworthy, selfless, grounded, devoted, loyal, committed, grateful, playful, happy and most importantly, rooted in God.

Seeing all our relationships through the lens of authentic love can transform our interactions into opportunities for spiritual growth, not just for ourselves but for those around us as well.

Beloved, the love we feel for our family and friends is relational love that comes easily, but relational love which concerns people in general, does not come naturally to us, it’s not automatic; we must rely on Spirit to develop relational love within us for all people.

It’s that love that causes us, like the “Good Samaritan” of Luke 10:25-37, to be willing to help and offer care to a stranger.

It’s that love that feeds our need to connect with other people and in certain instances, to find ways to stay connected.

It’s that love that leads us to get involved in others’ lives in a meaningful way, genuinely sharing their concerns and engaging in the things they enjoy.

It’s that love that healthy relationships are built upon, both physical and spiritual.

Without relational love, our message of God’s love will carry no weight because there’ll be no relationship behind the words. Jesus related to individuals and then met their spiritual needs, and He is our example to follow.

Amen †

Shelley Johnson “Relational Love” ©2026 April 28, 2026