The Chosen One

Let me start this off by saying I'm honored to guest post on my youth pastor, mentor, and good friend's blog. This youth pastor, mentor, and friend is named Caleb Wampler. To keep it short and sweet this man is incredible. He is one of the nicest, caring, and most outgoing guys you'll ever meet. What separates Caleb from the typical guy is his passion for God. This passion radiates off him and when you see him, it almost knocks you right over.

Caleb is always sharing his mind, wisdom, and quotes on his Facebook and Twitter pages. Some may think it's too much—I think it's just a man trying to spread the same love and message that changed him. One of his quotes that stuck out to me is "You are who God wants."

You are who God wants. I love this. Let that soak in for a while. God doesn't just want your local pastor, missionary, evangelist, or worship leader—God wants you! God wants your every want, desire, and feeling. People think God only wants them if they go to church every Sunday, pray 24 hours a day, or maybe if their feeling really "religious" they might even fast a meal or two. God wants the hurt, broken, lost, and lonely.

Just how bad does God want you? Well...bad enough to where he sent his very own son to die for you. It wasn't a nice joyous death either, it was the most gruesome and terrifying death anyone could experience. It cost God everything. It costs us nothing. We get to find rest in his never ending grace. If that's not love—then I don't know what is. 

God has a special plan for your life, do you believe that? He created you for a special purpose. Are you living for his purpose or your own purpose? My purpose and your purpose are completely different. In Psalm 139 it talks about how we are fearfully and wonderfully made. You're not worthless. God made you for a certain purpose and he wants you to live out that purpose.

God looks past how messed up you are and accepts you for who you are. God doesn't look at flaws, he thinks your flawless. He wouldn't have sent his own son to die for you if he thought otherwise. I think God likes using broken people like you and me because he has more pieces to work with. People think you have to change to come to God. I thought that at a time too. God takes us as we are and he changes us.

You don't have to do crazy things for God to accept you. Like I said above, he accepts you for who you are, not who you aren't. You don't have to preach the best sermon the world has ever heard, or you don't have to put a Bible verse on Facebook or Twitter everyday to be accepted by God. He accepts you regardless.

One of my favorite things about God is his grace. It's never ending. How many people would want you back if you lied and spit in their face? His arms are wide open just waiting for us to come to him.

People are always coming in or out of our lives; God never leaves. He is constantly cleansing, refining, and purifying us to who he has created us to be. He goes to crazy lengths to pursue us. People think we serve a warm and fuzzy God. The God I serve is a relentless, consuming fire God.

I love the story of the the lost sheep in Luke 15. It illustrates God's love perfectly. It states, "If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won't he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.' In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven't strayed away!"

No one is perfect, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Even when you accept Jesus into your heart it doesn't mean your life is going to be easy— let alone perfect. We are all lost sheep in need of a shepherd. That shepherd wants you. Do you want him?