Wallflowers No More

“Today at Sunday school we learned about how God chooses us not the other way around…” Said my 11-year old son as he got in the car when we were leaving church last Sunday. As a rule of thumb, Grant doesn’t talk to us much about what goes on at any school…so we knew that this lesson must have touched him in such a deep way that he was moved to share it with us. Dan and I silently waited to see if there was more that he wanted to add…soon we realized that was the extent of his sharing, so we made some comments on the truth of what he had learned. “Did you know that’s how it was?” We asked. “No, I didn’t…” He answered. “I remember the first time I heard that, myself” I said, “it was a huge revelation!” I added… 

Have you noticed how God works His lessons in themes? There are periods of time when a theme is recurrent and He weaves it together in different occasions and encounters. Sometimes, things we hear in a sermon tie perfectly together with something we read in an e-mail, which then ties together with a song we hear on the radio and something someone else mentions at work…In this instance, my son’s comment was the culmination of a series of lessons God had been teaching me on the fact He has chosen us. Among the most poignant parts of the series in this particular theme has been a blurb I heard on Christian radio. I don’t even know the name of the person who was talking, but he said, “all humanity is lined up against the wall, and God points His finger at you and says: ‘I pick you.’”

When I heard that, my mind went back to my teen years. I so did not enjoy that stage of my life. Between the ages of 11to18 I never stopped feeling/looking awkward. I also felt unwanted. At the handful of dances I ever attended, I was the permanent wallflower, always leaning against a wall or a railing as if looking for something to hang on to while the whole world seemed to be having fun, except me. Those were the days when girls had to wait to be picked by the guys. Girls had to wait to be asked by a boy to dance. Otherwise, we just had to resign to a night of shame by the wall. I can count with the fingers of one hand the times I ever got asked to dance by a guy (and I would have like three fingers to spare). In other words, I hardly ever got picked.

I still remember the loneliness of those days. I guess that is why hearing the message of how the Lord chooses us never gets old to me. That message means that I don’t ever have to feel like a wallflower anymore! And the good news is that neither do you! The truth of God’s selecting us descends on us like a comfy blanket that keeps us warm in the coldest of winter days. As my son is still dealing with the huge transition of moving to a new area and going to a new school, I’m sure he feels the sting of loneliness pricking at his young heart on a daily basis. Therefore, hearing that the God of the Universe has picked him since before He created the world, has to bring joy to his soul. 

“And the best part is, that you didn’t have to do anything for God to choose you…” we pointed out to our son. “He chose you just because of His great love and mercy and for that we are humble and eternally grateful.” Because now, we don’t have to be wallflowers anymore.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will. Ephesians 1: 3-5

Linking with Little R and R, Whole Hearted Home