A Year With God, Day 33 of 366

1 Kings 18:21:  Elijah went before the people and said, "How long will you waver between two opinions?  If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him."
But the people said nothing.

This verse is an interesting commentary on human nature.  Elijah is fed up with the people of Israel wavering between worshiping God, and worship of Baal.  So finally, after much arguing and preaching and trying to convince them to follow God, he kind of gives up. 

'Make a choice!' he says.  'I don't care which.  Just decide what you want to do, and do it.'

But the people said nothing.   They refuse to make a choice.  Did they lack the nerve to turn their backs on the God that had brought them out of Egypt?  Did they fear the pagan god Baal too much to risk his wrath?  Were they afraid to admit they'd erred?  Did they worry that they would look foolish?  Perhaps they were afraid of all the priests of Baal, because there were hundreds of them, and only Elijah on God's side.

Or were they simply incapable of making the decision?

It is human nature to sit and complain about all the things we see wrong with the world around us.  Unfortunately, when the time comes for us to get up and go out and work to change what we dislike, we don't want to do it.  Be it fear, or laziness or indecision, we do not like to fight the status quo.

So what is a good enough reason to go outside our comfort zone and stand up for what we believe?  Surely our the state of our eternal souls, and the souls of those we love, should provide powerful incentive.  And yet, too often it does not.

And does standing up have to be a huge risk?  I think not.  So here is the challenge.  Stand up for what we believe in for a small thing--like saying a quiet word of prayer before eating at a restaurant.  If a cashier gives us too much change, return the extra.  Show our appreciate for others by saying please and thank you.  Resist the urge to honk the horn at that man who cuts you off.

Start with the little things, and when the time might come to stand up for a big thing, then we'll be in the habit, and perhaps it won't be so scary.