Introduction: Choose Jesus and Choose to Win
Deuteronomy 30:15–16 lays a clear choice before us: life and good, or death and evil. God commands us to love Him, walk in His ways, and keep His commandments so that we may live and be blessed. To choose Jesus is to choose life, purpose, and the full expression of who God created you to be. Jesus didn’t come to limit our freedom; He came to give us the power to choose well. The five choices below, adapted from principles popularized in Daisy Washburn Osborn’s book, “Five Choices for Women Who Win,” offer practical, spiritual steps anyone—man or woman—can take to live as a winner in Christ. Choose Jesus, embrace these choices, and walk into the blessing God intends for you.
Choose Jesus by Individualizing Yourself
God made you unique. You are not a copy; you are an original crafted with specific gifts, personality, and calling. Choosing Jesus includes embracing your individuality as part of God’s design. When you individualize yourself in Christ, you stop measuring your worth by others’ standards and begin to steward your unique strengths for God’s glory. Identify your spiritual gifts, talents, and passions. Ask God how He wants to use those traits to bless others. Rather than comparing, celebrate the way God made you and the specific role He wants you to play in the body of Christ and in the world.
Choose Jesus by Celebrating Your Responsibility
Faith involves a response. Celebrate your responsibility to partner with God’s ability in you. You are not a passive recipient of grace only—you are an active participant in God’s work. When difficulties come, choose to see them as opportunities to exercise God-given strength. Embrace the responsibility to act: pray, serve, speak truth, forgive, and love. Doing so activates God’s promises in your life. Celebrate the fact that God entrusts you with influence; your obedience invites His blessing. How will you respond to the greatness God has prepared for you?
Choose Jesus and Believe You Can Begin Again
One of the most liberating truths of the gospel is that Jesus is Lord of new beginnings. No failure, no shame, and no past mistake can permanently define you when you choose Jesus. Each morning holds fresh mercies, renewed grace, and an opportunity to start over. Choose to believe that you can re-begin. Confess the past where needed, accept God’s forgiveness, and step forward with hope. This is not denial of consequences but acceptance of God’s restorative power. Re-starting with Jesus is not weakness—it’s faith in the God who makes all things new.
Choose Jesus by Identifying Jesus in People
Jesus taught that serving the least among us is serving Him (Matthew 25:40). Part of choosing Jesus is learning to recognize Him in people who are hurting, hungry, homeless, overlooked, or marginalized. When you meet someone in need and respond in compassion, you are ministering to Christ Himself. Practically, this means opening your eyes and hands: volunteer at shelters, give to ministries, listen to the lonely, and offer practical help where you can. Identifying Jesus in others turns everyday encounters into sacred moments and multiplies your reward in heaven and on earth.
Choose Jesus by Exterminating the Excuse Syndrome
Excuses are a spiritual enemy that keep good intentions from becoming godly action. “I’m too busy,” “I don’t have enough,” or “I’m not qualified” are common traps. Choosing Jesus requires a decision to reject excuses and accept God’s mission for your life. Replace reasons you can’t with resolve to try. Start small if you must, but start. When excuses die, growth begins. Make a list of recurring excuses you use, pray about them, and declare a new course of action. God equips the willing; He does not call the unprepared to remain inactive.
Practical Application: Living the Five Choices Today
– Morning choice: Begin each day asking God which single act of obedience or service He wants through you.
– Accountability: Share these five choices with a friend or small group and encourage one another to practice them.
– Reflection: Keep a short journal of small wins—moments when you recognized Jesus in someone, acted despite an excuse, or began again.
– Serve intentionally: Find one local ministry or neighbor in need and commit to regular involvement.
Conclusion: Choose Jesus and Win
To choose Jesus is to choose victory—victory over fear, over failure, and over the paralysis of excuses. These five choices—individualize yourself, celebrate responsibility, believe in new beginnings, identify Jesus in people, and exterminate excuses—are practical, revolutionary, and transformative. They changed lives for those who adopted them, and they can change yours. Make the daily decision to choose Jesus, act on these principles, and live as the winner God created you to be. Win in Jesus’ name, and let your life testify to the power of choosing Him. Have a blessed day in the Lord.
