My aching body was half relieved, yet also sad that our National Lacrosse Tournament was over. It had been a long four days of battling against many of the collegiate teams in hopes to become the country’s best team. As I half listened to the final awards program, I recounted several moments in our last game which ended in us becoming the #2 team in the nation. Suddenly, my teammate was hitting me in the arm saying, “Sue, get up! You need to go get your award. You have been chosen to be on the United States women’s lacrosse team.” Stunned, I wandered down the bleachers to accept this honor, not knowing what it meant that I was now a national athlete.
Have you ever been chosen for something that made you feel honored and special? Perhaps you have had the opposite – you were NOT chosen and felt rejected and dismayed. I have had my share of those painful moments as well!
There is no greater honor than to be chosen by God to be His adopted daughter/son. This is a title that many of us take for granted or do not fully understand. The apostle Paul enlightens us regarding this amazing truth.
“He chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love, he predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will – to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One he loves” (Ephesians 1:4-6).
When I was chosen to be on the U.S. team, this was more than an honorary title. It meant that I was to train hard every day with a group of other chosen women to represent the United States as we competed internationally. When God chose us before the creation of the world to be his adopted children, He did this for a significant purpose. We have an important eternal destiny to be in relationship with our Almighty God and represent His holiness and love. Our heavenly Father adopted us out of His agape love (the Greek word meaning unconditional love). It is His delight to be in a Father / child relationship with us.
My husband and I chose to try to get pregnant and give birth to two children, but we had no control over the personalities and characteristics of our children. However, when God chose us, He specifically designed us in a way that would best equip us for the particular works that He wanted us to do. The Passion translation puts it like this: “We have become his poetry, a re-created people that will fulfill the destiny he has given each of us, for we are joined to Jesus, the Anointed One. Even before we were born, God planned in advance our destiny and the good works we would do to fulfill it!” (Ephesians 2:10).
Paul reveals to us that is it God’s grace, His unmerited favor, that we have become His adopted children. This amazing grace could only be given to us because we have redemption through Christ’s shed blood on the Cross bringing us the forgiveness of our sins.
So fellow sisters and brothers in Christ, rejoice and give praise to God that you are chosen as His adopted child! You have an important destiny! You are wrapped in your Father’s love – special, forgiven, accepted, and deeply loved!
-Sue Corl