To Be Chosen By God

Psalm 139..... I used to read it when I was a little girl and just be in awe. I still am. The God Who created the Universe knew me before I was born, knew what I would do, who I would marry, what I would name my kids. God chooses us all. He knows us all before we are born. He knows everything about us.

I was born into a family that not only loved me, but adored me. I never doubted my parents' love for each other. I never wondered who I would live with or where I would go next. I wasn't abused or neglected. I made good grades. I ate supper every night with my family at the kitchen table. My parents tucked me into bed every night when I was little. Some people say I am a strong person. Maybe, but it's nothing I did. I was smothered with love. I was surrounded by people who would do anything in the world for me. I didn't have any real obstacles to overcome. I didn't struggle in school. I didn't have a bad childhood. I shouldn't be anything else but strong.
What amazes me is the strength I find in others who did have obstacles. The ones that have an inner strength that by all rights should not be there. Those who you know were chosen by God for a very special work. I know two people in particular that amaze me. They didn't have a childhood like mine. They didn't go to church every Sunday morning
and Sunday night with their parents, sister, grandparents, uncle, and aunt. They didn't grow up walking into a room and seeing people's eyes light up just because they were there. Sometimes no one noticed they were there at all. No one noticed they were hurting...or so it seemed.
God was there. He saw the pain and even though I can't comprehend why He had to let it happen, He saw it all. They had to wonder where He was. I know where He was. He was holding them, even if they couldn't feel Him. He was holding them and taking their circumstances in His hands and turning them and molding them into what they would someday become. And what they have become leaves me in absolute awe.
A man who shows a strength that could only come from God. A man who God
somehow has molded and changed into someone he never thought he would be.
Not because of his childhood, but in spite of it. A man I have watched God
grow and nurture and be able to use.
I know a woman who didn't grow up like I did. A woman who didn't have the
examples that I had and yet she is such an incredible mom. A woman who God
had to have His hand on because He had bigger plans for her later.
We are all chosen by God, but there are some that He just handpicks for
special things. There are some who must be broken so that one day He can
make them beautiful. I hope they know that He is using them in such big
ways. I don't know if they notice it, but I've watched them both. All you have to do is look and there you see it....the hand of God. I'm glad He let me be there in their lives. It is amazing for me to watch.....chosen. molded, and grown by the God who created the stars.

(previously published as a note on my Facebook page)

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