Dare to Reclaim Your Chosenness

On a recent afternoon, during my toddler’s much-needed nap, I found myself sitting at my desk in my quiet house with nothing to do. A miracle, indeed! Rather than sprint to the washing machine to try (in vain) to make a dent in the laundry pile, I opted instead to enjoy my sunny window, my peaceful home and my new journal.

In my journal, I copied a passage from Henri J.M. Nouwen’s Life of the Beloved. This simple thought on that silent afternoon stopped me in my tracks:

“We have to dare to reclaim the truth that we are God’s chosen ones, even when our world does not choose us. As long as we allow our parents, siblings, teachers, friends and lovers to determine whether we are chosen or not, we are caught in the net of a suffocating world that accepts or rejects us according to its own agenda of efficiency and control.

“The great spiritual battle begins–and never ends–with the reclaiming of our chosenness…. Our preciousness, uniqueness and individuality are not given to us by those who meet us in clock-time…but by the One who has chosen us with an everlasting love, a love that existed from all eternity and will last through all eternity.”

You are chosen. Regardless of what you do or have done, have been or are becoming– you are chosen. Now that’s quite a nice thought for a quiet afternoon.