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I looked in a concordance and found that the word choose (in Hebrew) means: to take a close look at something to determine my preference in the matter. It holds the connotation of testing or examining.  The root origin is related to tilling, turning over, or preparing the ground. The idea is that, through examination, I am able to distinguish the best or most useful options in my life.

I believe making a choice is more organic than commonly assumed.  Organically speaking, I grow into choices that reflect who I am even as who I am comes into focus. An ugly duckling of a choice becomes a swan in time.  True choosing is a process and like any process it is perfected over time.  The fruit born proves the good nature of the seed that was planted. There are stages in its development when it will look awkward, but in the end, it is a reflection of Christ in me, as me.

As I am asked to ‘choose life’ I am asked to take a keen look, to test and examine life, to till its ground…until I am able to recognize life as my most valuable option. I choose through recognition.

If I liken choice to preference then self-awareness plays a key role in making choices that fit. To know myself is to know my preferences. It is a matter of identity – a key element of the gospel.  My inability to choose God was solved when God chose me. Fallen humanity had a fallen nature – filled with fallen choices. God solved this conundrum by crucifying fallen humanity in Christ, joining us to Himself, making a brand new creation where the two have become one.

The goal of the gospel is to reveal God’s view.  God sees me in union with Christ. Words like fallen, cursed, or sin-natured are false images in the context of a new creation. I am not depraved, hard-hearted, sinful, disobedient, unwilling, unteachable, unsubmitted, or rebellious. These words simply do not define a new creature.

I share in Christ’s divine nature; His nature is infusing my own and my choices are affected by that truth. Redemption is a reality but it is hard to manifest when the ‘good news’ I continue to hear is far less than good! Many voices would tie me to a corrupt nature, even though the Gospel is radically good news that claims otherwise.  More good news still, God uses all things for the good of those who love Him.  I don’t need to be preoccupied with darkness or light; God uses them both for His purpose.

To believe Him and to trust His work is to remember all He did to fashion this new creation.  Remembering who I am in each moment is the work that automatically aligns choice with true preference. I choose according to who I perceive myself to be. Who I perceive myself to be is changing everyday. Choosing is a simple matter of self-recognition. To see myself in union with Christ is to see the on-going purification of my choices.

To take the focus away from choice is to return the focus to the goal of seeing myself as God sees me – in Christ.  Choices that reflect who I am today generate more natural movements. It is no longer about good, bad, smart, stupid, right, or wrong choices.  It is about being still, tilling the ground, seeing who I am, and remembering whose I am so that I can recognize life as my most valuable option.  Choosing is a form of mind-renewal and every choice serves to remind me of who I am.

Recognition reflects being while choosing reflects doing.  I focus on the being, not the doing. If a spider is likened to my identity, then its web is like a myriad of choices. As I define the spider, the subsequent choices are not a problem. I am affirming oneness, ending duality, and choosing daily…but the act of choosing is never more important than the process of becoming self-aware. I am assured that change comes faster to those who see who they are than it does to those who try to do what they should.  When my focus is on being then choosing occurs without thinking.