Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Foreign Pastor Chuck Allen here. And I'm so grateful that you've joined me on today's weekday podcast. Today I want us to talk about First Corinthians, chapter one, beginning of verse 26. And I want to read today from the message that Eugene Peterson wrote. It says, so take a good look, friends, at who you were when you got called into this life. Not many of you were the brightest bulbs, the power brokers, the high society types. Isn't it obvious that God deliberately chose men and women? That the culture overlooks, exploits and abuses, chose these nobodies to expose the hollow pretensions of the somebodies? I mean, that makes it pretty clear that none of you can get by without, you know, having a little bit of concern about what's my worthiness.
[00:00:53] And you know what? It also makes it clear that none of us can get by by blowing our own horn before God.
[00:01:00] Let's just sit with that for a minute. Because we live in a world obsessed with status, with resumes with blue check marks and follower counts and the right schools and the right jobs and the right zip codes and the right cars and what Paul says. Look around.
[00:01:18] God didn't call you because you were impressive.
[00:01:21] He called you because you were available.
[00:01:25] You ever notice how the story of God keeps flipping the script on the world?
[00:01:30] How the people at the back of a line end up in the front? How the ones with nothing to offer become the ones who change everything?
[00:01:40] It's like God's always picking the bench warmers for the starting lineup, the last pick for dodgeball, the ones who didn't even make the list. And maybe that's the whole point, y' all.
[00:01:52] Because if you're always trying to prove how worthy you are, how smart you are, how strong or deserving you are, you'll probably miss the whole thing.
[00:02:02] But if you can admit you're not enough, not enough, not on your own, not by the world's standards, then you might be exactly where God wants you to be, needs you to be, and can use you. Because God's power shows up best in weakness compared to God's wisdom, looks like foolishness to the world. God's love is for the ones who know they need it. So maybe today, instead of striving, instead of comparing, instead of hustling for worth, just breathe.
[00:02:35] You remember that God chose you, friend.
[00:02:39] Not because you were the best, because you were you.
[00:02:43] And that's more than enough.
[00:02:46] Maybe we ought to just stop today and pray. God thank you for choosing us, not because we're impressive but just because you love us, help us to live from that place of grace today.
[00:02:58] And, Lord, we're grateful for that. Thank you, friend. I know it was short today, but there's something powerful in recognizing it's not on us. It's all on him.
[00:03:10] Thanks so much for joining me. Thank you. This is Chuck Allen with the weekday podcast. Remember, you are loved. You belong, and you don't have to be somebody to be chosen by God.
[00:03:22] Have a great weekend. God bless you. Bye now.
