Every day, we are faced with choices that shape the direction of our lives. Yehovah does not leave us without guidance: He sets before us the way of life and invites us to choose it.
…choose life, that thou mayest live…
Deuteronomy 30:19
In this short verse, Yehovah our Father tells us that He has set before us life and death. He places before His people two diametrically opposed choices: life and good, or death and evil.
In the same way that a good father instructs his son or daughter concerning the best decision to make, our Father Yehovah instructs us to choose life.
I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that I have set before thee life and death, the blessing and the curse: therefore choose life, that thou mayest live, thou and thy seed; to love Yehovah thy God, to obey his voice, and to cleave unto him…
Deuteronomy 30:19–20
This passage provides remarkable insight into the purpose of the Torah.
Yehovah gave us the Scriptures as a guide so that we may know what is good and what is evil. Nevertheless, it is up to each of us to live by embracing what is good and rejecting what is evil—or to live according to the dictates of our own hearts and the prevailing cultural perspective or worldview.
This is the concept of free will that Yehovah has given to humanity.
The Question the Angel Does Not Ask
Rashi, an ancient Jewish Bible commentator, cites a story—or midrash—from the oral tradition, found in the tractate Niddah. In it, the angel responsible for conception asks God whether the child will grow to be strong or weak, wise or foolish, rich or poor.
The angel, however, never asks God whether the child will become wicked or righteous. God may determine the circumstances of a person’s life, but the decision to choose the good path or the evil one has been left to human free will.
Free to Choose Life in the Midst of Adversity
Although we cannot control every circumstance that affects our lives, we can determine how we will respond to them.
It is easier to be happy or pleasant when everything is going well. Yet there is no guarantee that we will remain happy or gracious when difficult times come—or even in the midst of good times.
Likewise, tragic circumstances do not have to shake us from our firm foundation, causing us to lose faith in Yehovah and become miserable and bitter. Even under extreme physical and emotional stress, we can choose our behavior: to love and forgive, or to remain in hatred and bitterness.
Most of us will never have to endure such brutal conditions, but each of us will face these choices throughout our lives.
We must choose whether to be courageous or not; whether to be selfless and faithful or give way to fear; whether to insist on our own way or surrender our human dignity, especially in times of severe adversity.
Our morals and ethics will be tested repeatedly throughout our lives. We cannot claim, as some Nazis accused of war crimes did in their defense, “I had no choice… I was only following orders.”
The truth is that we will always have the ability to walk according to the values of the Torah or to follow that broad road that leads to destruction.
It Is a Daily Matter
There is no decision we make that automatically remains unchanged forever. We are changeable beings, and our emotions rise and fall, often leading us to reconsider decisions we have already made.
That is precisely why we must understand that our relationship with our Eternal Father is a day-by-day matter. The decision to remain on His Path is one that we must make—or renew—each morning when we open our eyes and realize that we have been given another opportunity to continue our journey in this world.