A Cinderella Moment! (Ephesians 1)
Ephesians 1.5 Long before He laid down earth's foundations, He had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of His love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago He decided to adopt us into His family through Jesus Christ. What pleasure He took in planning this! [msg]After leading worship at Beijing International Christian Fellowship on Easter Sunday in April 2004, Steven Curtis Chapman left through the back door and ran into some missionaries who let him hold one of their Chinese babies. When Steven asked if she was theirs, they said no, but they were trying to find a home for her. He asked, "What is her name?" They said, "Maria". Immediately, a song Steven wrote years ago, called, "Who's Gonna Love Maria," started playing in his head. Steven couldn't believe the coincidence of her name, and was shaken to the core. When thinking about this, he broke down crying and called his wife, Mary Beth, explaining the strong connection he made with this little girl named Maria.
Steven couldn't get Maria of his mind, but he certainly had not planned to adopt another child. Because Maria was a special needs child and was already placed with an agency in a special needs program, Steven thought maybe they were just supposed to help her find a home. But when he returned to the states, Mary Beth already had the paperwork out and said, "I think we're supposed to go and get Maria."
The pieces fell into place, and a couple months after Steven first met Maria in Beijing, he once again returned to China to pick up Maria Sue Chapman. She had a heart condition which classified her as "special needs", but the Chapmans have a different idea regarding why she was special: she was theirs. Before they completed the adoption, she was re-diagnosed as being healthy, and her healthy heart began to constantly overflow into the hearts of those around her. As the youngest of the family, she was certainly a handful, but Steven and Mary Beth knew that their family would never have been complete without her.
For four years, the Chapmans grew together, through laughter and tears, joy and pain. Steven Curtis Chapman has sold more than 10 million albums, has had dozens of No. 1 Christian radio hits, and has won more than 50 Dove Awards, exceeding any other individual artist. Yet he would much rather talk about his family or his work with adoptions and orphans. In addition, they have seen the ministry they founded, Shaohannah's Hope, help over 1,600 waiting orphans find their forever families, raise awareness and champion adoption and orphan care in spheres throughout the secular and Christian arenas, and begin projects such as the home in Luoyang, China, that will care for special needs children.
Throughout it all, Maria has been the beloved youngest daughter in the Chapman clan. Quick to greet you with a big smile, and the first to throw up the "rock fingers" for a little bit of sass. She was also one of the two inspirations behind Steven's hit, "Cinderella". Boisterous and full of life, she loved flowers, ladybugs, birds, anything with wings, coloring, washing dishes, playing make-believe, the color pink, being "butt-naked", water, and her family. Her life was a picture of God's beauty; her adoption was a picture of God's love. Her family certainly loved her, and through the love of her family, she became beloved by the entire world.
On 21st May 2008, in what local authorities termed 'a horrible tragedy', Maria was accidently struck down by a car driven by one of her teenage brothers as he was backing out of the family driveway. She was rushed to hospital but passed away later that day. Over the last year the family have been healing but found great peace in the thought that Maria's eternal adoption was at last finalized on that day, as her Heavenly Father took her home to be with Him.
Just like the Chapmans opened their hearts and home to one poor little girl from China, God has also done the same for us. Through Jesus, we have been adopted into His family as one of His precious children.
According to Roman law, the person who had been adopted had all the same rights as a legitimate child in that family and lost all rights to their old family. All debts and obligations connected with their previous family were abolished as if they had never existed!
This is an amazing picture of what God has done for us through Jesus. He is now our Father and we are His children, free from all that previously held us captive. When the reality of this sinks in, our life will never be the same again.
6 comments:
Ephesians 1:8 "[The grace of God] that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."
God has all wisdom, all understanding. I do not. There are times when I can't love myself. There are things in my past that curdle my stomach when I remember them. There are people from my past who haven't forgiven me, and truth be told, at times I don't blame them. And I know this is not all. There are sins I don't even remember committing, people in the haze of the past I don't remember hurting, thoughts so fleeting that I didn't even think them sinful at the time. And in the years to come there will be more people hurt by me, more evil committed by me, more temptations given in to by me, more times wallowing in self disgust, more self hatred, more anger, more unforgiveness, more and more and more and more and more until I leave this life and enter the next one.
And yet....
It's not even that God, in his infinite wisdom and understanding remembers everything I have done, even when I don't. It's not even that He forgives me when I ask. It's so much more. As Jesus was beaten, tortured and ultimately crucified He knew. As the soldiers's fists crashed into his face, as their kicks broke his bones, He knew. As the whip tore his back to shreds, He knew. As the nails pierced his hands, as he hung on the cross, as pain wracked his body, as every breath came with agonising torment, He knew. He knew every sin I would commit, every person I would hurt, every sharp word that would leave my lips, everything I have done and will do that separates me from His perfection.
And He thought I was worth it.
Thank you Jesus, with everything I am and ever want to be.
Thats awesome Dom!
Eph 1:19-20 I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms.
The same power that conquered the grave lives in me, lives in me...
You know how scientists reckon we only use 20% of our brain or whatever? Im sure the percentage is much much less for how much of our spiritual power potential we use. Christ - the One who breathed the world into being, who took every sin (thats EVERY sin, of EVERY person that EVER lived..) on his shoulders, the One who personally shattered Hell's power over mankind - He LIVES IN ME!!!
...and I worry about stuff...??
Phil & Dom both have a such a great handle on those two verses!!! Wow.........
Gal 1:17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know HIm better." NIV
This whole chapter is sooo full of hope and promises of blessing - in fact it's right up there on my list of 10 most dynamite chapters of the Bible! -that it's hard to highlight one verse over another. But I am continually drawn back to v17 - in fact I always find it hard to go past it!
Here Paul tells the church at Ephesus that he is continually praying that they might receive the Spirit of wisdom and revelation - why? Just so they will learn to know Him better!
Sometimes we get so caught up with wanting His blesssing and anointing and power that we forget that the greatest thing in our lives would be for us to know Him better. The more we know of Him the more we become like Him and wow what an impact on the world if we all could be more like Him! To be able to show more love, grace and compassion to those who are living without hope would be to do what He most wants us to do. Isn't that what we're set apart to do?
I pray that my heart longs to know Him better and not just more of what I can get from Him.
Ephesians 1:11 In Him we also were made [God's] heritage (portion) and we obtained an inheritance; for we had been foreordained (chosen and appointed beforehand) in accordance with His purpose, Who works out everything in agreement with the counsel and design of His [own] will.
I recently updated my will to make sure my son inherited the home I purchased for us, through planning, sacrifice and hard work. I bought us a home so we could set down sold roots in Australia, a sense of belonging and to give my son an inheritance. It was surprisingly complicated to draw up a will that would legally carry out my wishes and it also involved planning for the future.
This experience has given me a greater understanding of Gods great love for us. Just as we want the best for our children, how much more God wants the best the best for us.
In this world I am unlikely to inherit anything, in Heaven, in eternity I do, as an adopted daughter of the King of Kings.
I read verses 17-19 as a prayer for the people I love: I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
For some reason, I struggled to read this chapter - maybe it was because I didn't do what yesterday's reading prompted me to, or maybe it is for another reason. Whatever it is, i know that the strength of knowing everyone is reading these at the moment is inspiring
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