Ephesians 1:1-4

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus, by the will of God, to the saints who are at Ephesus and who are faithful in Christ Jesus.  Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.

God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing.  What a wonderful thought.  He has given us absolutely everything we need to live this life successfully to the end when we are finally, completely, 100%, holy and blameless.  When I think about what it means to be holy, which means devoted entirely to God according to Webster’s, I am grieved by how far I fall short.  Blameless?  Not a day goes by when I am not guilty of some sin.  Like Paul I have to say that this is not something I have achieved yet. “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brethren, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”  (Phillipians 3:12-14, NIV

Paul is opening up to us the view that God has on all of this.  He is not limited by my human understanding as I sit here in this very fleshly body.  He knew before the foundation of the world that I would be one of His chosen.  God chose me!  That is the first wonderful blessing I have in Christ. Before I was formed in my mother’s womb God already knew me. Before I was even born He chose me.  (Jeremiah 1:5) How did He know?  That is one of the great mysteries.  And I like that God is full of mystery, that there are things about Him that I just cannot make sense of, nor wrap my mind around.  I love that there are still things about Him that are unknowable.  Someday I expect it all to fall into place.  Someday I expect everything to make sense.  Someday…when I am at last united with Him in the heavenly places.  For now I choose to rejoice along with Paul as I consider to what great lengths God has gone to love me, and to make an even greater effort to lead a holy and blameless life here on this earth.

Be Blessed,

Deb