“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! Deuteronomy 30:19
Terah, does that name ring a bell to you? If you’re like most folks, it probably doesn’t. So who was Terah, you may be wondering? He was the father of Abraham, and the reason you probably don’t recognize him, is because from what we can see in scripture, he didn’t fulfill his destiny. It’s sad, but true. God spoke to Terah and told him to go to the land of Canaan, but he never made it.
You see, like so many, Terah got satisfied along the way and never reached the place God intended for him to go. It’s in Genesis 11:27-32 where we see the short mention of Terah. All we really know about him is that he was Abrahams father and God was leading Terah to the “Promised Land” but he stopped short. He arrived at the place called Haran and spent his last days there. Now I’m sure it wasn’t an easy task to take a bunch of family members, herds of livestock and servants hundreds of miles through the desert to reach a destination, but how many “God things” are always easy. Haran may have started out as just a temporary resting place, but it ended up being Terah’s final resting place. The name Haran means, “dried up or parched place.” Anything overstayed can become dry and lifeless. That’s why it’s so important to make the right choice.
What I’ve come to realize is that we’re never “choice-less.” God always gives us a choice and He protects our freedom to choose, even if it means we make the wrong choice. I know I’ve certainly made wrong choices at times in my own life.
Even as far back as the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam and Eve everything they needed for success and in the middle of that utopia, He gave them a choice. The “Tree of Life” or the “Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.” One represents Grace while the other represents the Law.
Maybe you’re finding yourself at yet another crossroad today. Let me encourage you to choose wisely. Choose the path of “Life” for your years to come, and your generations to come.