Vv 1-3 A reminder that each of us “walk according to the course of this world” (see v. 2) being guided by evil and are disobedient. “Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of the flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.” (Eph 2:3)
We are dead when we live as the world lives. “But God, rich in mercy” (v.4) “raised us up with Him” (v.6) brought us to Himself. Imagine that, He brought us to Himself!
Vv 8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
“He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world,” (v 1:4) “for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we should walk in them.” (v 2:10) Would I have grown more in Him if I had understood that I was chosen by God? Understanding that He had a plan for me from the beginning of time, not just since I was born but from the beginning; would I have behaved any differently than I have in my Christian walk? Or did He allow me to walk as I have to teach me who He is? To guide me closer to Him so that I would grasp that no one on this earth can give me what I need most.
And what is that?
Being rejected by my mother, I wasn’t good enough. Being compared to other women by men I trusted, I wasn’t good enough. Being put down by an employer no matter how hard I tried, I wasn’t good enough. By people that I thought were friends, I didn’t measure up to their expectations.
But God…but God was there the whole time, lovingly waiting for me. He gently showed me that He loves me for who I am. I didn’t have to keep proving myself, He knows me and accepts me for who I am and where I am. He chose me to be His because I am part of His plan, my talents are just what He needs. There are no surprises with God, He has known me from the beginning, flaws and all.
I cannot boast or think I am better than anyone else. He chose me for a purpose and the only way I can know what that purpose is is by reading the Bible, not bits and pieces here and there but all of it. From cover to cover, year in and year out. He uses His Word to guide me to all truth.
In Him is my whole being. I may fall short from time to time but He is there to pick me up, to dust me off and with a repentant heart, I am ready to move forward, hand in hand with my Savior.
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As I explained last week, as I read the Bible this year, I have been keeping a journal of my thoughts, of what He shows me and what I am trying to grasp. I don’t expect you to understand each thought but perhaps my thoughts will help someone else move forward in Christ. Until next week…may you walk with God in His abundance.
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