“Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness;
2 In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;
3 But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour” Titus 1
Chosen, redeemed before the dawn of time. I cannot tell you the exact answer to the questions that may raise; although, as I have tried to display the fact that God does not work within the same time/space continuum that our minds do. I do know that it is pure grace by which I was chosen and not because of anything special. Indeed, I remember a young Christian girl who wanted to prove herself worthy of His love. At 15, I was teaching Sunday school, witnessing for Christ, and trying to “be all that I should be”. I remember, in hopes that God would be pleased praying, “Lord, are you proud that I am not like the others who have followed after sin?” That came right before I fell down head long into failure after failure. Struggling and trying to pull myself back out, trying to be worthy of His love; wanting so desperately to feel deserving of Him. My failures had not come from defiance but came while struggling to follow Him.
It was a journey which would step by step, through many trials and struggles lead me to an understanding of the depth of unconditional love with which God loved me.
His presence in the middle of the night when I awakened frightened or troubled, His ever present whispering voice when loneliness tried to grip my heart, the steady peace which carried me through when trials tore my heart wide open, and His ever present joy that over rode the pain which came as I walked through years of illness ultimately allowed me to see Him as my only treasure. No longer did it matter why He chose me, I only stand in awe and wonder that
He did. I stand rejoicing because He did; overwhelmed with love for Him because He first loved me. Questions regarding why He does things the way He does or how predestination vs freewill fade into the background because of all that I have seen, I trust the kindness of His heart. I trust the compassion of His love for me. I am God’s Chosen, redeemed, beloved, forgiven Child because of Christ-and that changes everything. It changes how I see the world and how I see the trials of my life.
If predestination why evangelism? Because that is the good pleasure of God’s will to draw men to Himself through the preaching and teaching of His Word. God pleaded with men in the Old Testament to come. Christ pleaded with men to come. Christ called His apostles to go into all the world and preach the gospel. God calls each of us to bid the lost to come. That is His pleasure and that is His delight. I do not need to understand all of the mysteries of His Will, I need only seek and savor every moment spent in His presence. Even that I could not understand because of my own great wisdom. That comes only as a result of His gentle teaching hand teaching me to love Him. He led me through many dark and treacherous valleys to show me how much I could trust Him. The sorrows, the tears, and the pain was worth it so that I might know Him. There it was that I fell in love with Him.
Let me share with you this song which I wrote in 2005, inspired by that love for Him because of His love for me- The Master Weaver.
©2014 Effie Darlene Barba
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