Pick me, Pick me! It's 2023!

I remember back when I was a kid in gym class and did not want to be the last kid chosen for a team. I don't like to brag, but I was not that kid.

I was a decent athlete, and even if the game was dodgeball, I was always a solid pick. Of course, I may have been that last pick if there was a robotics team back then.

We can all breathe a sigh of relief. God does not operate that way. He seems to like the odd ducks, misfits, and unlikely picks to be on his team, even leading his team. 

Need proof?  Below are just a few God chose for his team.

• "If you build it, they will come." These are the paraphrased words of God from the book of Genesis as 600-year-old Noah is chosen to craft an Ark with his 100-year-old sons.  And.. not just any Ark, a 'Desert Ark.'  
• As a  spry 75-year-old, God instructed Abraham to "pack up the Winnebago (figuratively speaking) and hit the road."   ​So much for the Golden Years.  "I will make you a mighty nation."  added the Lord. 
  A mighty nation?.. Abe and the Mrs. were past the age of having their own kids, so he did not know how this would happen unless God was talking about some 'Mighty Nation' game for his smartphone.
• Moses, prince of Egypt exiled for MURDER, is working in a land far, far away as an overqualified tender of sheep when God speaks to him from a burning bush. 
  "Moses .. you and I are going to free the children of Israel.  Ok, I will do most of the freeing, but I will keep you busy."
  ​I don't know about you, but I would not have picked a guy on the run for murder who smells like sheep to free the captive/slave people of Israel.

Speaking of sheep, God chose a shepherd boy named David to 1. slay a giant named Goliath and 2. become the first great KING of Israel!

Then, off to the NEW TESTAMENT.. where Jesus did not choose men right out of seminary' as his disciples. Their resumes referenced talents such as 'fishing' and 'tax collecting' but not a youth pastor or worship leader credential to be found. Seminary background, maybe?  Lol, not so much. Not even experience as the side ushers at the Temple. So, without checking their LinkedIn profiles, Jesus simply said... "Follow me."

And remember Jesus' words to the thief on the cross... "This very day, you will be with me in paradise."  shortly before he died. 

Noting the obvious: Being a thief is NOT who we 'good Christians' would choose. At the very least, we might require a probationary period, yet Jesus did just that. He 'chose' the thief for his team.  That is how big God's Grace is.

​Next, God chooses the very first 'Missionary' to share the Gospel with the world! 

"With the first pick, in the first round of the first Gospel Missionary Draft, I choose Saul of Tarsus." These are the paraphrased words of Jesus as Saul travels the Road to Damascus.  His actual words were, "Saul, why do you persecute me?"  which included a blinding light.

WHAT?  This same Saul was Pharisee of Pharisees and was recently spotted checking coats at the stoning of Stephen?  Yep, that Saul.  

... Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest Acts 9:1

Serious Red Flag- I believe choosing a guy breathing threats and murder against the disciples was a RISKY choice, but that's just me.

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Now, fast forward a couple thousand years and some changes to 2023.
I  have not experienced a literal burning bush while walking my dog or a blinding light on my way to the Grocery store, but I still believe I am chosen and capable.  

Not that it makes sense based on my relative and limited qualifications of cartooning (aka coloring between the lines), but in fact, we are all chosen. Chosen not only for eternity in Heaven but also to serve in big and small ways now.  

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So do not keep God in a box or a lid on what is possible regarding the blessings and opportunities to serve.  

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" Isaiah 6:8

Just like Isaiah, listen for God's leading in big and small ways, and when God calls on you... reply, "Here am I? Pick me! Pick me!"

​May God bless and use you in ways BEYOND YOUR DREAMS and all that God intends. 

Jeff (Chosen.. go figure) Larson

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