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God Chooses
Andrea Lende • May 17, 2020
Psalm 65:4
God Chooses
You can also listen to the meditation and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/God-Chooses-ee6fi8
Daily Word:
Psalm 65:4
“Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man whom You choose and cause to come near, that he may dwell in Your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, Your holy temple.”
This verse gives me cause to pause.
I need to be reminded that it is a privilege to be chosen to know God.
It is the highest honor to be called to Him.
It is a gift.
I should never take this gift for granted.
There are some who will never know the love of God.
There are some who will never feel the goodness of the Lord.
There are some who will never know the real reason for our being here.
I am ever so thankful that God chose me to know Him.
I am so thankful that God caused me to come close to Him.
The moments I spend with Him are the most precious moments of the day.
Those moments allow me to endure the day.
They help me be a better version of myself.
I need to spend a few minutes in God’s presence and feel His Holy Spirit cleansing my spirit.
Left to myself, I would be selfish and less than kind.
Left to myself, I would be angry and upset.
Left to myself, I would be unpleasant and hard to be around.
Those precious moments I spend with the Lord change me.
They mold me.
They allow peace to cover me.
They allow His grace to permeate my soul.
They melt my heart.
Today I choose to be ever so grateful that the Lord chose me to know Him and caused me to come near to Him.
May you find the grace in the fact that God chose you to know Him and caused you to be close to Him.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for choosing me to know You. Thank You for bringing me close to You and allowing me to sit in Your presence so that You can change me. Thank You for not letting me alone to remain in my misery. Thank You for showing me Your goodness. Thank You for Your many blessings. And thank You for showing me the real reason for my existence. You made me to worship You. In my worship of You I find peace and grace and love. I find You, Lord. Help me always be close to You. Keep me at Your feet so that I know Who is holding me up. Keep me seeking You, Lord, so that I leave the chaos of seeking the world alone. May Your peace be upon me. May Your grace shine upon me. May Your mercy flow my way as I desperately need it. Quiet the chaos around me and allow me to dwell in Your presence. I so long to worship at Your feet. Until then, lead and guide me in all that I do. Help me follow You, Lord. Strengthen me in every way and give me the courage to do as You ask. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: I have chosen you to know Me, My child, and You will always be Mine.
Response: Thank You, most gracious and glorious Lord.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.