Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between prosperity and disaster, between life and death.
In the verse above, Moses continues to exhort and encourage the Israelites to make the choice for God. In the previous verses he explains in detail all the blessings that will overtake them if they choose to obey and love God. He also explains in detail all the curses God will put on them if they disobey and choose to worship and love other gods. The key concept is: loving and obeying God is our choice.
God created us with the freedom to choose life or death. He will not make the choice for us. It is up to each one of us. What He does, however, is give us detailed scenarios of the consequences of our choice.
Our Christian walk is a daily choice for life or death. Even when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, it doesn’t prevent us from making our daily choices for life or death. Every day at work, for example, we have the opportunity to get offended or to forgive, to treat people wrong or to walk in love, to steal from our company or to be honest. Verse 19 says, “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses… Oh, that you would choose life, that you and your descendants might live!”
Sometimes the choice is not very clear. The world will present opportunities and situations where you truly don’t know which way to go. It can look wonderful on the surface, but it could mean suffering for you down the road. At that point, ask God for wisdom to make the right choice. When He gives you peace about a specific direction in which to go, that’s your clue to choose that option. “Choose to love the Lord your God and to obey him and commit yourself to him, for he is your life” (v. 20).
Excerpt permission granted by Marcia Malzahn.
Marcia Malzahn (Marci) was born in Nicaragua, Central America. In 1979 she left Nicaragua due to a revolution and moved to the Dominican Republic and lived there for seven years. Marcia moved to Minnesota in 1986 and started a career in banking with Marquette Banks that continued for the next thirteen years in the areas of Cash Management, Private Banking, and Retail Banking. In 1995 Marcia became the first Online Banking Specialist in the Twin Cities.
In 1999, she moved to the IT field and started working for Living Word Christian Center (LWCC), a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. At LWCC, she held the positions of Y2K Project Manager, Director of IT, Associate in charge of Finance, Human Resources and IT, and was Corporate Assistant Secretary of the Board. She managed a budget of $31.5MM and 28 employees.
In January 2005, Marcia moved back to the banking field and helped start a new bank in Edina, MN, Tradition Capital Bank, now at over $400 million in assets. From 2005 to 2013, Marcia was the Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Financial Officer of the bank. In January, 2014, Marcia’s role changed to EVP/COO and was promoted to Chief Risk Officer. Marcia was also the Corporate Secretary of the bank’s Board and of the holding company’s Board.
In October 2014, Marcia started her own bank consulting firm, Malzahn Strategic, focusing on Strategic Planning, Enterprise Risk Management, and Talent Management for community banks. Marcia is also a public speaker and speaks on motivational/inspirational/leadership topics as well as banking topics such as Enterprise Risk Management. She holds an Associates of Arts degree from North Hennepin Community College and graduated with a B.A. in Business Management from Bethel University. Marcia also graduated from the Graduate School of Banking in Madison, WI.
Marcia is involved in the community. She was a member of Financial Women International for sixteen years and held several board positions including president of the local group and of the District. She is a member of the Minnesota Women Economic Roundtable and served as treasurer for two years. Marcia is also chair of the Board of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities. Marcia has also volunteered in other organizations including Matter, Pulse Movement, Opportunity International, Way to Grow, Feed My Starving Children, HopeKids, Meals on Wheels, and Farmers Market Youth Project.
Marcia was the recipient of many awards including:
• 25 On The Rise award given by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in December, 2005.
• Forty Under 40 award given by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal in May, 2006
• Virginia D. H. Furman Outstanding Woman of the Year award from Financial Women International in September, 2006
• Top Women in Finance award from Finance and Commerce Newspaper in November, 2008
• Outstanding Women in Banking award given by the North Western Financial Review magazine in November, 2009
Marcia is the author of her book Devotions for Working Women – A Daily Inspiration to Live a Successful and Balanced Life published in 2006. Marcia published her second book The Fire Within – Connect Your Gifts with Your Calling in October 2015. Marcia and her husband Tim live in Minnesota and have two children: Nicole and Patrick. Marcia enjoys spending time with her family, working out, singing, writing, and public speaking.