God Chose me!

2 Thessalonians 2:13-15 -  But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.  He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.  So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. 

I love how Paul puts this!  It is such a refreshing thought…that Christ chose me to be saved! Christ chose me to believe in him…to allow the spirit to control my life…to read his bible and study…to pray to him and build a relationship…to SHARE in his glory when he calls me home.  God chose me and you…to love and nurture through great men of faith like Paul.  I did not get picked last…like I did most times on the playground…God chose me before I even walked on the field…and chased after me until I listened to his call on my life.

God calls us also to stand firm on this teaching and pass it on to others…just as Paul passed it on to these new Christians in Thessalonica.   God calls us….chose us to work for him until he returns…not to guess…theorize or work strange math algorithms to predict the date he will return.  God calls us to affirm our faith by sharing the great testimony of what he has done in our lives…to walk each day in his will and model to others how much we love him…how much we appreciate the love he chose us to receive.

Makes me think once again this morning if I am following his model….am I chasing after others like he did me?  Am I writing enough encouraging letters to the new Christians I know…do I knock on enough doors of the lost and beg to share the love of Christ with them?  For me…that would be a great big NO...I am far too self-centered still.  God has so much work to do on my selfish heart…I marvel at how he chose such an imperfect vessel…how he chips away each day a bit more of me and replaces it with him.

I should never think that I am doing enough…my love for others…my love for what Christ did for me on that cross should make me reexamine my game plan every morning.  I need to find more ways to love others…I need to find ways to remain positive like Paul…to search for new ways to share and teach his gospel.  I need to wake each day and thank God for choosing me to save…to love…to transform into something he can use.

Thank you father once again for loving this selfish lady….for choosing someone like me….full of sin. Forgive me for making it so hard on you…for not being a great student…for making you chase me so far.  I thank you that you never grew tired of chasing after me…and that one day you got my attention.  Help me father to slow down and sit at your feet and let you teach me now. Help me use your love and mercy to drive me to chase others and share what you have done to change my heart. Show me how to love on others more. Amen.