D vs D

Flashback to the sermon on Sunday....Pastor J was talking about our identity and how if we have the wrong view of ourselves, it is damaging in so many ways.
Linked to that was the idea of our choices, which so often then form our identity...or what we think of ourselves. It was then he uttered these words...words that resonated with me then, and have been frequently on my mind since....

"Perhaps if we were more deliberate, we wouldn't need as much deliverance."

So in the context of Sunday's sermon, what I think he was talking about was making good, wise, Godly - DELIBERATE - choices in how we think and speak and act. When we do that, we are less likely to develop 'issues' that hinder our growth, or draw us away from God or damage our identity. 'Issues' we need DELIVERANCE from. So in the dating situation...a DELIBERATE choice to not push the boundaries sexually. In a friendship....a DELIBERATE choice not to gossip. In the workplace....a DELIBERATE choice to do an honest day's work and show due respect for those in authority. When faced with an offence....a DELIBERATE choice to forgive and not hold any form of bitterness or seek revenge.

And in the context of everyday life, I am reminded that I need to be DELIBERATE in my interactions with God, His Word and people. It is so easy to go through a busy day and apart from a glance at the Bible on the bedside table, a quick prayer for a good parking space and grace at dinner, I don't give God time or thought. Where is the 'DELIBERATENESS' in that?
Instead, it is to my benefit if I make and take the time to open that Bible and read it...filling my head with the things of God to meditate on and think about throughout the day. It is wisest for me to turn the TV off and for company, put the Christian radio station on. It's a much better choice when faced with a burnt dinner, crying baby and late-home husband (and don't we all know those 3 often steamroll us at the same time:) to lift my eyes and voice to God than to rant and rave and cry....even better if that happens to be the 6th or 13th or 27th time that day that I have spoken to my friend and creator. And when I hear about a friend in need, my immediate response of 'oh no...that's too bad' should be followed by a prayer and then a call or a meal or ......
Can I urge you to read this with ears to hear me whisper to you..."Be DELIBERATE my friend...be DELIBERATE."