Pick me! Pick me!

Last night we had a church board meeting.  These aren’t typically an example of what one thinks of when one thinks of intense, high action, adrenaline rush experiences…and that’s okay.  I’ve been in board meetings that had all of that and though they might be memorable, they weren’t at all fun.

At this particular board meeting, we were required to undertake the annual responsibility of voting the officers and the portfolio’s upon the different board members.  It is a very routine process and there are generally not many surprises in the way it turns out.  I’ve been involved in this process for several years now and the roles seem to turn out the way I figured they would even without exercising any influence.  We all seem to have a general sense of the best fits.

Something about the process amused me last night though.  I wasn’t surprised by anything except once.  I was surprised by the sense of child-like gratification that I felt when I was chosen to be the Vice-Chairman again.  I figured that was probably the best fit and I would have been surprised had I not been nominated for that.  The amusement was that I felt like I was on the playground again.  We’ve all been there right?  Growing up, I don’t recall being the first one picked very often…unless I was in 6^th grade and we were choosing teams against a bunch of 2^nd graders (what one will do for an ego boost!).  Everyone knows what that inner turmoil is like when you are left wondering if you’ll be the last man standing in the lineup.

I was actually caught off guard by how liberating and uplifting it is to be chosen.  That is why today’s passage in 1 Corinthians 1:26-31 really stood out to me.  In these few verses, we are told no less than three times that God chose us.  Sure, you’ve heard that God chose you…pat yourself on the back.  Let’s look again though…did you ever catch what He chose?  It says that He chose the foolish, weak, lowly, and despised.

You know where we get tripped up?  We try to think in the past tense about these verses.  We think something like, “God called me when I was foolish and weak…but look at what He has made  me into now!”  BZZZZT--Wrong answer.  My Bible doesn’t tell me that I’ve stopped being foolish, weak, lowly, and despised.  Yes, I am certainly a different person now than when God first called me…because I wasn’t even a person when that happened.  It tells us here in no uncertain terms that the only reason I know Christ is because of God.  I did NOTHING.  I wasn’t in some celestial line-up raising my hand like Arnold Horshack saying “Ooo…Ooo…Pick me! Pick me!”  God chose me before I even knew about a choice.  I did nothing to merit His favor.  I wasn’t skilled.  I wasn’t beautiful.  I had no redeeming qualities.

“Well Donnie, that isn’t very uplifting.”  Oh yes it is!  In comparison to Christ, regardless of our great faith or non-existent faith…we are all foolish, weak and lowly.  Think about it…if we think we aren’t foolish, weak and lowly then we are full of pride…proving that we are indeed foolish.  The difference between our lowly humility and foolish pride is perspective.  Who do we think we are?  We can either boast in ourselves or we can have the correct perspective and boast in the Lord for His gracious choice of us...and live accordingly.