"Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong."
1 Corinthians 1:26-27
This verse is so powerful. When I was called I was the worst kind of person and for a long time I refused to come back to Christ because I thought I was much too sinful for someone so Holy. I definitely was not wise in my choices and I was influential in all the wrong ways.
Truth is I, and we for that matter, are much too sinful in the light of perfection. I deserved to die plenty of times because
"The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:23)
This sounds radical, but is your life so complete with your pride, egotism and selfishness? Mine wasn't, mine still isn't. But there's so much peace in knowing God can help me in this ongoing inner battle.
Lately my past will not leave me be. There are plenty of people who know who I was: manipulative, self-centered, selfish, conniving. I'm perfectly aware of the stereotypes that exist: when all else fails just be "born again". I can assure you, nothing failed in my life except the lifestyle that had completely failed me. I was a slave to my flesh, to what I thought made me happy... then I realized a lot of people only liked me under conditions. That I did certain things, talked a certain way, looked a certain way, thought a certain way.
That's the most incredible thing about God- if you are genuine about your desire to turn away from your sins then He will pour out His love to you in ways you never thought were possible. With no conditions, only unconditional love!
With that said He will use the worst part about you to reveal His glory. If you were once foolish, He can use your testimony to help others. It's amazing that the church of Corinth during the 1st century was full of gamblers and prostitutes- yet Jesus made good of them and He can make good out of you too!
I encourage you to evaluate your life and ask yourself- am I really happy? Is what I'm doing beneficial to my future? You'll be surprised at what you find out!
