October 7, 2011 at 4:05pm ·

Approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense. —Philippians 1:10
I’ve received a lot of good advice in my life. Near the top of the list is this wise observation from a friend: “Life is not made by the dreams that you dream but by the choices that you make.”

Right—our life today is the sum total of all the choices we’ve made up to this point. The apostle Paul gave similar advice in Philippians 1:10, when he said to “approve the things that are excellent”.

In any given situation, we have a whole continuum of choices—ranging from really rotten choices, to the mediocrity of average choices, to choices that are good, and then to those that are excellent. God wants to move us across the continuum, past our natural impulses, all the way to excellent choices.
Often it’s challenging to make the most excellent choice, especially if there aren’t many others joining us. Sometimes it may feel as if our desires and freedoms have been suppressed. But if we follow Paul’s advice, we’ll notice some really positive outcomes—like being pure and blameless and fruitful.

Make the choice to live a life filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal. 5:22-23). Then revel in the result!

The little choices we must make will chart the course of life we take; We either choose the path of light, Or wander off in darkest night.

Make an excellent choice and watch the ripple effect of blessing.