Chosen

2nd Peter 2:9-10
But your are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

You were hand picked.......chosen by God. We need to stop thinking of ourselves as unworthy of God's love, provision, and blessings. You are also a royal priesthood......not only priests, but royalty as well. You are a child of the King. And what is a child of a king generally called? A prince.......or princess, right? Does a prince or princess wallow in self loathing and feel unworthy of the blessings bestowed upon them due to their birthright? NO! Of course not. So why should we? Also, we are a holy nation. Are we holy because we did something special or put away this or that? No. We have received Jesus' righteousness.....it's not of ourselves or anything we've done or can do. We are furthermore described as His own special people........God's own special people. We belong to Him. Have you ever felt like you didn't belong. Most of the time I've felt that especially around family. Out of place........used to be, and still sometimes feel like the "black sheep" of the family. An embarrassment..........a loser. But God doesn't see me that way.......no matter who else does. The bible says that even if my own mother (which of course she wouldn't....she's the sweetest woman in the world) denied me.......or shunned me......He never will. But as I well know now..........success is not measured in dollars or things.........or even education or accomplishment.......in God's eyes it's measured in obedience to Him. Not that those things are bad.......they aren't.......but they are not what makes us a success. No one has accused me of being unhappy in seven and a half years. I'm laughing and trying to get other folks to laugh.......it's the joy of the Lord and it's contagious. At a restaurant my friends and I go to they have given me a nickname.........they call me "Mr. Giggles". We all have times of self doubt.......and we all at times have felt like the biggest loser in the world. But we're not. Oh, no we're not. God tells us who we are.......whether we feel like it or not! We were chosen by HIM!!! Not by some fluke........not out of chance. But He looked at you and said, "For him/her........I'll die for him/her." And He did. He knew you before you were even born. He knows every day of your life. He knows when you took your first breath, and when you will take your last. He knows exactly how many hairs are on your head.......and how many tears you've shed in your entire lifetime. No ones parent can say that. No ones spouse or even if you're a parent.......you can't even know those things about your own child. But God knows that about you. That's how much He loves you.....that's how special you are to Him. God is good.........all the time.
Pray about what you are planning on doing......and if the Lord gives you the OK.......then start laying the foundation for that dream.......for that goal. What's it going to take? How long will it take? What must I do? What must I stop doing? All these things are important. I don't know where you stand on current events......but it sure looks like the time may be growing short. But even if it's not.......we still need to get more serious about our walk with Christ. The world ends for someone every minute of every day. Don't take who you are in Christ for granted.........and don't forget our mission........as described above in our scripture for the day. "......that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy." Proclaim what the Lord has done for you. And let them know......what He's done for you........He'll do for them. TTFN and God bless. :-) PJ