Chosen

Hello to all the new faces. I thought I’d take the time to share a little bit of my testimony and what God has taught me through it. I’ve never been this vulnerable before and this is super nerve racking. So here we go…..

I grew up in the church and God became very real to me at a young age. I gave my life to Christ when I was 11 years old and in the same moment was called to missions. I went on my first missions trip when I was thirteen and my second when I graduated high school. Shoutout to AIM and their Semesters program. My identity in Christ and my worth was firmly rooted inside of me. But that all changed, during my freshman/sophomore year of college. I became really sick and lost tons of weight. After countless doctors, procedures, and tests I was diagnosed as gluten intolerant and my whole world came to a crashing halt. How was I to pursue missions if I wasn’t able to live and work in the communities that my heart felt pulled towards? My own body failed me. I hated myself and I hated my body for not being able to sustain me. The littlest amount of cross contamination would put me on bedrest for two days. I falsely believed I had been forsaken, that God was done with me, and that I had missed the mark somewhere and no longer had a calling. I would desperately pray for God to heal me and when he didn’t that was just further confirmation that those beliefs were right.

I began searching for an identity, a new purpose. I tried being the life of the party- the girl you can always have fun with. My social calendar was always full and I was always smiling but I was secretly dying on the inside. I later tried to find myself in academic pursuits. If the world saw me as the brilliant girl with the booming research career that’s who I’d be. On the outside I was the perfect picture of success but on the inside I was riddled with imposter syndrome and feeling like a failure. So I moved on to boys, I had my heart broken, and got into a super toxic somewhat emotionally abusive relationship. I let him tell me how to dress, who to talk to, and what I needed to do. For the most part, he did what he wanted with my body and refused to listen when I told him to stop -which just deepened my hate for myself and the shame I carried. I told myself that it was my fault – that since I wasn’t able to stop him I must have wanted it.

To cope, I told myself to just try to be happy, you need to be happy- because this was as good as it would ever get. During that relationship, I believed him when he said I wouldn’t ever be able to find someone better than him. I hid behind this façade of a happy healthy relationship. No one could know the real truth. And every day I mourned for the God given dream inside of me that I could no longer have. But then Covid-19 hit the U.S. and I could no longer distract myself; it was just me and God in that tiny little dorm room. And being the good God he was; he reminded me of who I was and who’s I was. I later left that relationship and began to be wooed by God all over again. And little by little he empowered me and taught me the truth of my identity. That I wasn’t forgotten or discarded but CHOSEN – I have always been chosen. So I want to share with you 3 fundamental truths.

Even if I have no greater calling on my life than to live, go to church, love my neighbor, and die of old age I am still chosen

1 peter 2:9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

For starters 1 peter 2:9 outright says that we are a chosen people and God’s special possessions- that we can declare his praises. How powerful is that? Wow!!! What a statement! I could end with that and it is plenty argument enough but lets continue.

Jeremiah 1:5 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.

Jeremiah 1:5 tells us we were not only formed by God and known before we were born but that we are also called to the nations. I don’t believe everyone needs to leave their homes and fly halfway across the world but I do believe you can cross that driveway and go tell your neighbor how much God loves them. You can bring over a casserole, invite them to dinner, to church, etc.

Micah 6:8 Act justly love mercy and walk humbly with your God

Micah 6:8 calls us to simply walk with God, to act just and love mercy. Can you imagine how big a testimony, how large an impact the church would make on the world around us if we simply acted like that? With mercy and love instead of hate and judgement?

James 1:27 Religion that God our father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after the orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world

We are called regardless of the details, to love and look after the orphans and widows in their distress. One of my favorite quotes from David Platt is that “If he isn’t leading you to go then he is leading you to sacrifice a chunk of your salary to send someone else.” – Just because you say you aren’t called to the mission field doesn’t mean you get to opt out of sacrifice.

If you call yourself a believer then one of the most basic tenants of discipleship is to renounce all you have (Luke 14:33) and to take up your cross (Matthew 16:24) ie to be willing to stand apart from the world and seek not to store up treasure on earth but in heaven.

Christ chose to die on the cross in one of the most painful ways for me and you. So that means you are worth dying for.

John 1:11-13 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

We are a child of God. Ephesians 1:5 says we were adopted to sonship through Jesus. God sent Jesus to die for you and Jesus was willing to die for you. He thinks you were worth the pain and humiliation of the cross.

Your Body is a work of art don’t insult it.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

If my body is a temple of the holy spirit then it’s not defective and its not broken or handicapped or something to be hated. If you have seen pictures of the beautiful temples and cathedrals around the world you know how awe inspiring and stunning they are. How dare you say that your body is worthless when Christ paid the highest price for it, his life. If you pay premium for something than it must be worth it. It doesn’t matter who you are, what you’ve done, or who you’ve done it with. You are worth it. Treat your body with some respect.

I was watching a documentary about human trafficking and the most impactful thing that stood out to me was when a psychologist weighed in on the mental state of prostitutes and trafficked victims. The feelings of being tainted and dirty and the shame associated with it. That broke my heart. I wanted to take the time to explain that this bible verse is not condemning you. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you’ve done -who you’ve done it with. Your body is still a holy, beautiful temple in spite of your “past”. You haven’t gone too far and you are redeemable. He still loves you. He doesn’t judge you or hold your past against you. Church, we need to stop shaming people for their past. For drug abuse, for their piercings and tattoos, and for their sexual history. They are all worthy in the Father’s eyes and its our job to make sure they know that. Even if they never stop sinning or give their lives to Christ.