Verse of the day: Joshua 24:15

"And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Drawing the Line: The Art of the Daily Choice

"...choose you this day whom ye will serve... but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." — Joshua 24:15

At the end of his life, Joshua gathered the tribes of Israel at Shechem and gave them a startlingly modern ultimatum: Stop drifting and make a choice.

It is easy to coast spiritually. We naturally absorb the values of our ancestors ("the gods on the other side of the flood") or the values of our surrounding culture ("the gods of the Amorites"). Joshua knew that passive faith is a myth. Nobody drifts into holiness. To serve the Lord requires an active, daily, and sometimes defiant decision.

If we were to capture Joshua’s declaration in the style of a medieval illuminated manuscript, the page would glow with the weight of this spiritual crossroads. Medieval illuminators didn't paint for historical realism; they painted for spiritual truth. In our imagined illumination, Joshua stands as a noble knight—a protector of the covenant. Behind him, a swirling blue river separates him from toppling golden idols in a thorny wilderness. These represent the allure of the past and the conformist pressures of the present—beautifully gilded, yet ultimately lifeless and crumbling.

In contrast, Joshua stands firmly before the stone archway of his home, his family gathered safely beneath the folds of his crimson mantle. His sword is planted in the earth, forming a cross, while his gaze is fixed on a sky of burnished gold leaf—the medieval artist’s way of capturing the uncreated light of God’s presence. Around the borders of the page, hidden among the vibrant blue and green vines, faithful hounds guard the text, reminding the reader that loyalty is a posture of the heart.

Today, our idols rarely sit on stone altars. They live in our calendars, our bank accounts, our anxieties, and our need for approval. Like the Israelites, we are constantly tempted to blend a little bit of the local culture’s worship with our devotion to God.

Joshua’s words cut through the noise. Notice he says, "Choose you this day." Yesterday’s faithfulness does not automatically carry over into today, and tomorrow is not yet ours to command. We only have the canvas of today.

What occupies the gilded center of your life right now? Where do you need to plant your banner and draw a boundary around your heart and your home? Step out of the drift. Look past the crumbling idols of culture, stand at the threshold of your life, and choose this day whom you will serve.




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