Verse for the day:
Keep my requirements and do not follow any of the detestable customs that were practiced before you came and do not defile yourselves with them. I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 18:29)

I remember, as a kid, wanting to do everything the other kids could do, and go everywhere the other kids could go. But I had a “mean”, “stern” mother, who out of love for me, wouldn’t let me follow in the trail of trouble that some of those kids found themselves in. Her standard answer was, “I don’t care what everyone else is doing, you’re not going to do it.” And that would be the end of the issue.

Just because everyone is doing it was not a reason for me to do it. Now this did not always make me very popular and many times I felt like an outsider, but in the end, when the big picture was revealed, it turned out that she was right.

God tells us not to follow along with the crowd. He warns us about accepting practices and customs just because they have always been done that way. Just because that’s they way it has always been done doesn’t always make it right.

Look to the Father for guidance in all things and He will set you on the right path. We can’t see the “Big Picture” from His perspective. We may not understand the rippling effects of this, seemingly unimportant, “ We’ve always done it this way,” easy solution. Follow God’s leading and steer clear of all things He warns you against. He’s the artist, He knows what the masterpiece is supposed to look like! He knows the end of the story.

Dear Heavenly Father, I pray today that you would keep me from following the crowd. I pray for the wisdom and the strength to go your way, not my way, to go your way and now the crowd’s way. Keep me firmly on your path, Lord. In Jesus Name, Amen.