Being
Chosen
8/1/14
This
word that we commonly use has a special meaning yet I know that many of us
randomly throw this word around and not recognize its true identity. Being chosen for a responsibility is one of
the more humbling experiences a human can experience and the task given to tem
should never be taken lightly. God set
into motion this concept through His creation of our lives and through this
choosing He gives us the authority to complete the specific mission. It does not matter what level this choosing
might be, always know that it has a perfect solution for God’s Kingdom. Being chosen is not a picking from a group of
people, great consideration has been placed upon this decision simply because
God the Father created you just for this purpose; you are special for a
specific reason.
Remember
when we were kids and a bunch of us would get together and play games that
required teams? This setting really comes to life in elementary
school and it brings to mind a certain time in my life where this situation
played out, and to be honest when I look back at it I understand that through
my actions and selfish desires hurt some of my friends as well. I do
not know how many of you know about the old game called nation
ball. It is a glorified and modified name for dodge
ball. There are two teams and they line up on opposite ends of the
large squares and then the opposing team throws a ball at the
line. If a person gets hit with the ball they are out, if they do
not then they stay in the game until they are the lone remaining person; those were
the simple rules of the game.
Why
we called it nation ball and who made up the game I have no idea, it may just
be a California thing because as soon as we moved from there I never heard
about the game anywhere else. The teachers would have the task of
choosing two people to be the captains and then those captains would choose
their team. Of course the object of the game was to win so when it
came time to pick the team our minds focused squarely on the people that would
be the most agile and hard targets to hit…..NOT!! Being of our age
and not understanding the true concepts of the game beyond “not getting hit
with the ball” we had no understanding about the concept of choosing a team
instead of picking one. It also explains why that our teachers would
be laughing at us sometimes as well.
Looking
back at those days and remembering some of the nation ball games that I
participated in, I remember that most of the teams that I played for basically
had the same kids on them. It did not matter who the captains were
when it came time to pick the teams many of us would be on the same team almost
every time. We had no concept other than who could physically play
the game, nor did we care about who actually played to win the game either, we
simply picked our friends and those who could be agile enough not to get
hit. Funny thing was that the ball that we used for this game was a
large soft rubber one and when you threw it and it hit someone it would always
ricochet around and hit two or more people at one time so some of the “agile”
players would get knocked out early and have to leave the game. This is an
example of the difference between picking a person and choosing a person and it
is huge difference that is important for us to understand when it comes to what
God has planned for our lives and what the world deems as picking a person to
participate. And it is through this concept that we as Christians
lose the true concept of these words and the meaning behind them.
Being
picked one will always know the reason why a person is picked...one does not
always understand the reasons why one is chosen. A good example of this is how God chose David
as the leader of God’s personally created nation of Israel. We read about this story in the book of I
Samuel where God tells Samuel to go to the house of Jesse and there the true
king of Israel will be chosen from his sons.
Now, in my house I have no sons but I have four beautiful daughters,
which makes things a little bit tense at times.
Within these four lovely souls come a wide array of personalities and to
be honest they represent the entire range that a personality can be defined,
with two of them defining the opposite ends and the other two defining the in
between margins. I know that when I was growing up my brother had to really
think about why mom and dad decided to have another kid, it happens to every
older sibling and I know it occurs in my household as well.
Approximately
forty seven years ago a certain boy entered into this world. This boy had no idea of what his mother went
through in order to bring him into the world and it was not until he was an
adult that he fully understood this entire setting. But even as I was being formed in my
biological mother’s womb God was preparing my mother for the future both hers
and mine. It was through an act of love
for my life that she allowed me to live with my only parents that I have ever
known. At that point in my life none of
us knew that there was to be anything “special” about me until it was realized
that I was chosen for these set of parents and that my coming to them was
strictly a miracle in itself.
If
one is honest, we must admit that it is impossible for us to understand this
type of knowledge about our lives. How can
someone be chosen for a task when they are fresh out of their mother’s
womb? Our finite minds cannot comprehend
this action nor can we entirely function in its sovereignty. What humans can do is try their best to walk
within the guidelines that God has chosen for us and to do our humbly best each
and every day. The inner human heart
shall never be understood by the world and even when we study it, it shall pass
by us without knowing its full capacity, yet God knows each and every detail
about our heart even before we were created and that is what it means to be
chosen by God.
Rebekkah
is my youngest and I am the youngest in my portion of the Bishop family as well
and it is no secret that the older siblings plot heinous things upon the
youngest sibling just because they feel that they are missing out on something
because of their presence, this is nothing new.
However, I must also admit that we youngest of the family can be a
little weird and unusual when it comes to our thoughts and ideas and while
there is nothing wrong with this our older siblings might think otherwise at
times, which can be a partial explanation as to why Jesse did not include David
among the lineup when Samuel came to locate God’s chosen King.
The
sons of Jesse were mighty and strong and evidently had the physical features
that could define a strong king but God spoke to Samuel to overlook these
physical qualities and to search the heart of the young men in order to know
which one God desired for this mission.
One by one Jesse’s sons stood before Samuel and one by one God remained
silent. Samuel knew that there were not
many sons that remained yet God held His heart quiet and even after a second
pass, God remained silent. After every
son that was present was passed over by God, Samuel asked Jesse if this was all
of his sons, which Samuel already knew that it was not because God had already
shown him that one of the sons was to be king.
Jesse said that the youngest was out tending sheep and was not present,
and Samuel told Jesse to go and get him.
When
David appeared God said to Samuel that this was the one who was to be King of
Israel and the one that God had chosen.
God could have picked anyone of Jesse’s sons to rule over Israel simply
on their appearances, stature and physical qualities alone but it was the heart
that God was looking at and not just the physical abilities. This is the prime example of why God choose
people and does not pick them. God had
things already planned out for David and in order for Him to fulfill His
promise to Israel He had to complete His choosing through the human
process. Normally the firstborn of a
family would be considered the leader or heir of such a responsibility, but God
overlooks this human obligation and seeks out the heart who is most qualified
for the plans that He needs completed, and in this case it was the youngest not
the eldest.
What is the difference
when it comes to picking a player for your team and allowing the world to
dictate what you have to offer? Not much to be honest because both
concepts differ little. When you are picked for a team for the most
part it is based upon your talents and not what is in your
heart. How many multi-million dollar contract offers are given to
short players coming out of high school or college; not very many and there is
a reason for it. There is nothing wrong with a smaller person
playing a sport but when you place them up against taller and stronger players
they cannot compete at that level. However,
if you think about it the best coaches of any sport come from those who played
the game, understood it yet knew they basically had no chance of making it as a
player on the higher level. And this comes down to the main question
of which setting is more important, the player or the coach?
The world cannot choose
you for it cannot conceive your inner abilities, only what you present to the
table. The world is very limited in its scope of your life and we
should always remember this fact. We seem so busy running around
trying to please the world and its beliefs that we even forget who we are and
what our inner being stands for; this is exactly what the world wishes for you
to do give up your inner being for its own selfish existence. What
will the world provide for you in return, have you ever asked yourself that
question before? It is an important one yet the true answer is short
and to the point; nothing.
Your heart is the
determining factor that separates you from the world. Along with the
spirit that is within you these two vital institutions give us the existence of
uniqueness. There is no way that the world can even begin to
understand you, for it did not create you nor does it know your heart. When
an object, person, company refuses to understand your personal desires and
livelihood there is no way that they can honestly say that they have “chosen”
you. Also the world has no idea about your true and present life
which means all that they can know about is your past, which should bring into
your mind another being that has only that capability; it is not by coincidence
that the two run course together either.
Being picked for a team
according to worldly and physical standards will make an individual proud of themselves
for it will reassure them that they are at the top of their game or
expectancy. In many ways this is a good thing but if these ideas
become embedded within our hearts pride will take over and demands will begin
to flow from within. The opposite is true for those who are
chosen. People that are chosen will be scared to death because
according to the definition of being chosen those people have passed a test and
have been noticed for specific qualities that reside from within. People
who are chosen are never comfortable with what the projects that they are
completing, for they understand that there is a purpose for their presence and
the things that they complete affect many people on many levels.
Our
enemy does however understand our potential and through this understanding he
will do his best to make God’s plan for our lives is delayed as long as
possible. The further he can separate us
from God the better his chances of establishing his ways as our priority. When God chose Moses to lead the nation of
Israel out of bondage Moses questioned God’s decision on a continual basis yet
God did not waiver once bit in His choice.
God chose me to write and for the majority of my life I despised writing
and wanted nothing to do with this art.
Of course we will have questions of why God chose us for the things that
He has blessed us with and that is ok, but as I continue to pen these articles
my questions are answered when I look back over God’s words and understand that
someone, somewhere needed to hear them.
The
words I share with you scare me to death at times, but I cannot argue with them
for they are not mine but God’s. We are
the only tools that He has to reach His people and if I can help in that
mission, I am going to do my best at all times.
God says for us to repent and to change our ways and He will be faithful
and just to restore our land. Don’t
believe our land is sick? Take a look
around at your land and what do you see?
It is your land that God has chosen to heal and to provide the necessary
living conditions to produce everlasting life for others around you. God chose me to convey this message to you
and now it is up to you to make up your heart’s beat to God’s calling. God chose you for a special work; heed His
words and understand that He loves you eternally. The world cannot know your heart, only your
past and this means that it can in no way understand you enough to choose you
for anything eternal, only God can do this.
DLB
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