He chose me - I chose Him…
Filed in NHL |Journal,
Don’t know if I’ve ever shared how General Claudius Josephus became a member of our family. It is a very interesting story —
Six years ago on Father’s Day, the kids had me go into the living room. Then they brought two Great Dane puppies and placed them in my lap, one black and one fawn colored. I chose the fawn colored puppy. But since they were too young to remove from the mother, they were returned until weaning time.
When we went to pick up the one I had chosen, a very interesting thing happened. Of the number of puppies scampering around, the puppy that I chose came over and sat down between my feet. It was as if he chose me even though I had already chosen him.
Betty and I were talking about that this morning. I thought how this incident puts a face on our salvation in Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches that God loved me before I loved Him, and that He chose me before I chose him. This is one of the great mysteries of salvation.
Ok, nuff on that for now. CJ still thinks he owns me.? 
Looks like the storms are coming. According to the? reports we can expect very intense weather this afternoon. We have? a? porch that extends across the front of the house. Betty and I love to? just sit there just to enjoy the outside. Don’t know if this will work this afternoon. Oh well, we’ve already had our morning ’sitting out.’
Now I need to share a great secret. While doing my devotion this morning in Psalms, something dawned on me as to why I have grown to love this book so much. It was as though the Lord gave me a deeper understanding on the uniqueness of the book of Psalms.
I always shared how? Psalms teaches us how to pray and how to live a faith walk. What dawned on me this morning is that Psalms doesn’t simply teach us how to pray. When we are reading and meditating in Psalms? we are actually praying. This is what makes the book of Psalms so compelling to our hearts.
Isn’t that strange. I’ve often taught? how to pray the Psalms as first person, present tense. Then it really dawned on me this morning that? when a believer is reading from this unique book, it truly becomes? part of the? believer’s prayer life, even when the believer isn’t fully aware of that.? Guess that is why I find myself lingering in Psalms more than I do in any other book. In fact when I am reading through the Bible, I can’t wait to get to Psalms.
This morning my devotional thought came from Psalm 4:3, where David said, “But I know the Lord has set apart the godly man for Himself; the Lord hears when I call to Him.”
I thought ‘How can David call himself a godly man, when he did so many ungodly things? Even thought about the ungodly things that I have done in life, and even since I’ve been a believer. Is there something more to being godly than simply being? good all the time?’
Perhaps you have wondered about this same thing. What makes? a godly person godly, is not his personal goodness.? Notice once again what David says — “But know that the Lord has set apart the godly man for Himself.” All this has to do with the ’setting apart.’ The godly are set apart people. Out of this setting apart comes the goodness of the Lord, which allows the work of His goodness to take place in our lives.
It is His goodness that brings about goodness in our lives.
Jesus said to the? disciples, “You did not chose me, but I chose you.”
? The idea of divine election is a doctrine that a fleshly mind cannot? endure. It goes against every fiber of our natural thinking.? It is a mystery that goes beyond our ability to understand. Yet David says,? ‘the godly man’, that is the? man set apart and chosen by God,’ will have? prayer success. The Lord hears when he calls.
A major key to all the promises of God is to take to heart the call of salvation. Paul said,? “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” (Rom8:28)
If we are called according to God’s purpose, what then is God’s purpose? The sum total of God’s purpose was for Jesus to be the firstborn of many brethren, that is, the firstborn of all the new covenant children of God. It has always been about family.
Jesus taught us to? pray a family prayer of,? “Our Father who is in heaven…”
Ok, nuff preaching for today.
Let’s make a little journey down memory lane. Often when Bety and I visit Campbell Creek Cemetery, I’ll walk around just to view the varied headstones. Two of my great grandparents are there,? my grandfather Martin’s parents, and my grandmother Martin’s parents. Actually? the greater part of that old cemetery is my family. Having to expand all the time.
The past couple of days I’ve been thinking about how quickly time passes and how very much the world we live in has changed from my grandparents time. My grandfather Martin was born in 1876 and grandma in 1888. Those were pioneer days. Grandpa homesteaded 160 acres near where Campbell Creek Cemetery is located.
I really don’t remember grandpa very well. Only got to know him for about six months. I do remember him playing the guitar on the porch of the old blue house that they lived in. The house had a breeze way down the center that opened on both ends.?
But even then wasn’t too far removed from pioneer times. I well remember grandma cooking? on a wood stove and how I had to? do my home work by an oil lamp. Making a trip to town was high adventure and not very often.
Guess my point is that how very little we think about how the pioneer days were not that long ago. When grandpa was born the Civil War had only been over eleven years.
1976? was the year Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, the year Col. George Armstrong Custer and his men were killed at Little Big Horn, and the year? all Native Americans were order to the reservations.
This brings me to a bit of family history in Betty’s family. There were other ‘trails of tears’ besides the? Cherokee Indians being forced to move to? Oklahoma? Territory. Betty’s foreparents included the Choctaw Nation in Mississippi. They also were forced to? relocate in Oklahoma.
In fact I’ve met Betty’s great uncles and the Indian in them is very obvious. Was telling Betty? that she needs to get a picture of her great uncles to show our kids and grandkids. But the Indian is on both sides. Grandpa Carver said we have Cherokee in our family line. Back on my Martin side, we have Apalachee Indian. Guess all the families that trace back to pioneer stock can find Indian in their lineage.
Wow it’s 4:45 p.m. Time to close out for the day. Don’t want to ramble too much.
Talk with you later.
Buddy
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