Grateful…

Romans 11:7 (NLT) “7 So this is the situation: Most of the people of Israel have not found the favor of God they are looking for so earnestly. A few have—the ones God has chosen—but the hearts of the rest were hardened.”

Only one greek lesson today: The NLT translates this word into “chosen.”

ekloge /ek·log·ay/ 1 the act of picking out, choosing. 1a of the act of God’s free will by which before the foundation of the world he decreed his blessings to certain persons. 1b the decree made from choice by which he determined to bless certain persons through Christ by grace alone. 2 a thing or person chosen. 2a of persons: God’s elect.

If I understand this verse, God has chosen those who have found Him and His favor. The inverse of that is that there are those whom God has not allowed to find him, regardless of their earnestness, diligence and passion. This is something I can’t wrap my head around, but I am grateful. I’m grateful that God, in His mercy, chose me to be one of those people who “gets” to find Him and His favor.

The more I have pondered this the more freeing I realize it is, once we really grasp the reality of it.  I don’t get it.  I HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!  Were it not for God choosing me, it wouldn’t even matter, because no matter how I searched, I could not find Him. Man, that rocks my world!

Papa, I am so thankful and grateful for your grace and love. Why you’ve chosen me to be one of your own I have no idea, because I certainly don’t deserve the grace and mercy you show me daily. Thank you. My prayer is that I never take advantage of your love, grace, and mercy and the fact that I have been chosen to find you. I pray that I never forget that I am only yours because You chose me. Bless your name.

Love… forever

Romans 8:38-39 (NLT) 38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angles nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow – not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39 No power in the sky above or in the earth below – indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Oh how many times I’ve listened to this verse in various translations over the years.  I bet I’ve heard or read it a hundred times…  But, for some reason, today I really heard this verse with new ears. I began to read it really slow and let each phrase sink in.

“…nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.” Nothing? What about my own sinful pride? What about my deceitful and desperately sick heart (Jer 17:9)? Nothing? Thank you Lord that you have more grace and mercy in your heart than I have sin in my nature. Thank you Lord.

“Neither death nor life…” I am forever tied to His heart. Whatever happens to my physical body, to my flesh-suit is irrelevant to the eternal security of my spirit. Thank you Lord.

“…neither angels nor demons…” Even the spiritual beings have no bearing on how may Daddy loves me. Thank you Lord.

“… neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow…” Even my mind has no effect on God’s love for me. As I’ve studied over the past week, my mind can affect my ability to relate to Him, but it doesn’t keep me from God’s love for me. Thank you Lord.

“… not even the powers of hell can separate us [me] from God’s love…” That is powerful. Just because I am under attack and even when its sifted through Father’s hands, His love for me is still the same. I just have to endure and rest in knowing that He still loves me the same. Thank you Lord.

“No power in the sky above or the earth below – indeed nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us [me] from the love of God…” Nothing! Not even my own self – because I am part of “all creation” – can separate me from God’s love. Thank you Lord.

“... that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That is the key. Jesus Christ HAS to be Lord. He has to have COMPLETE control. I have to be in TOTAL SURRENDER to Him in order to have the confidence and peace of NEVER being out of God’s love. Thank you Lord.

Thank you God for your love… a love that isn’t affected or controlled by me; a perfect love that is inpenetrable to the effects of my sin; a love that never ends; a love that never changes.  Teach me to love you the same way… with your heart and not my own.

Why does HE love us?

This is what I pondering yesterday and I woke up still wondering, Why does God love us? I’m not trying to come down on me or anyone but when I think about the core of who I am and the depth of my depravity, about my disobedience , about my pride, and all the crap that goes with that. When you get past all of the cliches and the “well HE has to” stuff, How do you answer that question. What about us, is so lovable to HIM. Is it just because he created us, and HE loves HIS creation. I mean I create things all the time but what I create does/obeys what I tell it to, and when/if it doesn’t I scrap it and build a new one. I mean HE calls children, and I can understand that a little because you love you kids because they are your kids, they are a part of you, there is a heart connection, but beyond that Father calls us “friend” and that is a choice. You have to choose to love your friend, if I had a “friend” that acted the way the we (humanity) does, I know that I would not continue to be their friend. 1 John 3:10
This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother…
I know that there are lots of time that I don’t do what is right, and there are/have been many of times that I dont’ love my brother. Now those times do last forever but, why does HE choose to continue to love me in that? I understand grace, or at least I think I do, but my question even to that is why. I mean couldn’t HE have seen that we were going to sin against HIM from the beginning and scrapped the project and built new people that would love HIM and worship HIM. I know that HE could have and yet HE didn’t… so why? Why keep us? Why put up with our crap? I mean HE’s God, HE can do whatever HE wants, and yet HE wants us, He wants me. That’s just something I don’t get.
Again I am not trying to be grim but it was just something that really blows my mind. I mean I could research this and think about I for a long time and probably never know the answer, other than, HE is God and that is what HE wants to do.