I Chose You When I Planned Creation
March 11
Ephesians 1:11 “In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.”
When I was in grade school, many of our recesses were spent playing kickball or some variation of tag. The captains of each team were (almost) always the “popular” boys. Occasionally, a good old-fashioned “rock-paper-scissors” contest would decide the captains. But, it was a well-known and unwritten rule that a couple of the boys were often the captains. It didn’t take too many recesses for me to understand that I would be one of the last boys chosen to join a team. The order in which the boys were picked was also the order in which we would line up to kick the ball. So, being one of the last chosen for the team meant I was at the end of the line.
In my tenure as a teacher, I have had many recess duties where teams are still picked with the popular and athletic boys as captains. Just as it happened to me in grade school, there are still the boys who are almost always picked last on a team. However, there are times when I, or other teachers, step in and help choose teams or set it up so that who gets chosen for which teams varies. Quickly, though, at recesses that follow, students generally go back to the old and predictable way of choosing teams. The excitement of those chosen first is vastly different than the dejected look on the face of the boy chosen last.
Although my memories of being chosen last at recess are disheartening and painful, I am thankful I have a Father in Heaven who chose me long before I knew Him or had a desire to follow Him. God has adopted and accepted me in Christ Jesus. He has chosen me. He has redeemed me from slavery to sin and has forgiven all of my sins. In choosing me, He paid the highest price to redeem my life from destruction. That price was the precious blood of His One and only Son, Jesus Christ. I’m not sure I understand why God has chosen me, but I know it is true. I am grateful He has chosen me. He has chosen me so one day I will enjoy a glorious and eternal inheritance in Heaven. Oh, what a day that will be!