You are Chosen

Chosen.

I choose you.

You are chosen.

To be chosen is something that all of us wish for. To be wanted; accepted; desired... chosen.

How many of us grew up always being picked last for the team; overlooked for the band; left behind on the excursion; excluded from the group. I would be willing to bet that all of us have been left out at least once in our lives - but probably far more than just once.

This deep desire we have as human beings to be chosen is not a coincidence or an accident - we were created to desire connection and belonging and acceptance.

Why?

Because God, our Creator, chooses us.

He created us to desire to be chosen... because He chose us.

His Word says,

"But you are a chosen people,
a royal priesthood, a holy nation,
a people belonging to God,
that you may declare the praises of Him who called you
out of darkness into His wonderful light."

1 Peter 2:8 (NIV)

Look at that!

Even if you, for your whole life, have been rejected and overlooked and excluded, the most important One has already chosen you! He looked at you and loved you and chose you before you were even born. He pursues you and holds out His hands to you and longs for you to run to Him - where you will finally be accepted and truly belong.

What are you waiting for? You life will change because He chose you - and when you accept, you belong to Him completely.

You are chosen.

~Rachel

When I Pointed my Finger

Have you ever had one of those moments where you were judging someone or a group of people, then suddenly the tables turned and you realised you were the one with the problem?

I had one such moment last week.

My sister and I are currently reading through the book of 2 Timothy together, and last week we were reading chapter 3. In the very beginning of this chapter I read these words:

² For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³ unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, ⁴ traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God...

My immediate thought was, "That is so true - there are definitely a lot of people like this in the world."

My very next thought hit me in the face.

I am one of these people.

I can be proud and selfish and disobedient and ungrateful and I can lack control and abound in hate.

This verse can describe me.

At various points in my life, I have been guilty of most of the things listed here... And this list isn't even comprehensive!!

Oh, the shame. That I pointed my finger at "people like this in the world"... Before realising that I am imperfect and unholy.

I praise Jesus because the Holy Spirit used these verses in my life to show me my sinful nature. I praise Him because He loves me more than I can describe, and I have the opportunity to become more than this.

Have you ever accused (even an unspoken accusation!) others of wrong-doing, and then realised that you, yourself, are guilty?

~Rachel

Contentment and Enjoyment

A late night at work = this view

Hi friends!

My sister and I study the Bible together every week, and last week we read 1 Timothy 6.  Two verses in particular stood out to me really profoundly, and I want to share them with you.

⁶ Now godliness with contentment is great gain. 

 ⁷ For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain^[c] we can carry nothing out. 

 ⁸ And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.

Contentment is a huge challenge for me.  I seem to always be wanting to do something new and experience new things.  I struggle to simply enjoy being where I'm at here and now!  When I read verse 8 above, I was challenged by the thought that I should really be content with my basic necessities, and that really, anything above and beyond that is a gift.

However, we didn't stop there.

¹⁷ Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.

It suddenly became clear to me that while contentment is certainly something I should be working on (obviously, because verse 6 says that godliness AND contentment is great gain!), I live for a God who wants more for me than the basic necessities.  He gives me more than I deserve; more than I need; more than I know what to do with.

I was blown away by this truth.  The truth that God loves me SO MUCH that He created this universe; gave His Son to take my very own sin and dirtiness so that I could live eternal live with him; blessed me with my husband, family and friends; saw fit to give me a job that provides for more than I need... The list goes on.

When I learn to be content with the basic necessities, I will actually be able to enjoy the simple things and not wish for something more/different/new.

I so love that I have the Bible to explore and learn new truths!  God is truly amazing.

Do you struggle with being content?
Could you learn to enjoy the simple things of life?

~Rachel

Establish Your Hearts

Yesterday my husband and I read James 5 together. One phrase, in verse 8, really stood out to me, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it:

Establish your hearts.

Establish = set up on a firm or permanent basis (Oxford Dictionary).

The context around this phrase is to be patient and wait for the Lord; He is returning one day. In the meantime, we are told to be established. The question is: to be established in what?

Verses 1 to 6 of the same chapter speaks of the things in this life which end up being worthless - things like money, clothes and pleasure. When we come to verses 7 and 8, we are reminded to look ahead to what is important and to what will last. Things that are ahead are things to look forward to - and while we wait, why fill our time with meaningless frivolity?

For me, the only worthwhile thing to establish my heart and my life in is Jesus Christ. He is the One that will never change; will never leave me; will never let me down. I can be firmly established in Him now and know that I can remain established in Him until the end of time. What a wonderful thing to be sure of!

Will you choose to establish your heart in Jesus, and look to Him for your everlasting satisfaction? It will definitely be worth it!

~Rachel