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Chosen to Be: Embracing God’s Deliberate Love
“For the Souls in Purgatory – Eternal rest grant unto them O Lord”
Isaiah 54:4-12
Fear not, you shall not be put to shame;
do not be mortified, for you shall not be disgraced;
For you shall forget the shame of your youth,
the reproach of your widowhood no longer remember.
For your husband is your maker,
the LORD of hosts is his name;
Your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,
called God of all the earth.
For a moment I forsook you,
but with great love I will gather you.
In an outburst of wrath, for a moment
I hid my face from you;
But with enduring love I take pity on you,
says the LORD, your redeemer.
This is for me like the days of Noah,
when I swore that the waters of Noah
should never again deluge the earth;
So I have sworn not to be angry with you,
or to rebuke you.
Though the mountains depart
and the hills be shaken,
My love shall never depart from you,
nor my covenant of peace be shaken,
says the LORD, who has mercy on you.
O afflicted one, storm-tossed and unconsoled,
I lay your pavements in carnelians,
and your foundations in sapphires;
I will make your battlements of rubies,
your gates of carbuncles,
and all your walls of precious stones.
Grace Prayed For
This scripture passage prompts us to pray for the grace of radical self-acceptance rooted in God’s unyielding love and choice. It’s a grace to truly believe, deep within our hearts, that our existence is good, intentional, and cherished by our Creator, allowing us to shed all shame and embrace our true identity as His beloved creation.
Reflection
Take a deep breath and let the words of Isaiah 54 wash over you. “Fear not… do not be mortified.” These aren’t just comforting words; they are a profound declaration of your inherent worth, spoken by the very one who designed you. “For your husband is your maker, the LORD of hosts is his name.” This imagery isn’t accidental. It speaks to an intimacy, a covenantal bond, a profound personal relationship. Before you even knew yourself, God knew you. Before you took your first breath, He chose to make you. This isn’t a passive act of creation; it’s an active, loving, and deeply personal choice.
Think of the shame and disgrace that this passage bids you to forget. We all carry burdens, past regrets, or feelings of inadequacy. But the divine voice here insists that these are not your true identity. Your true identity is “chosen,” “redeemed,” and an object of “enduring love.” Even when it felt like God had “for a moment… forsook you,” His love was simply waiting to “gather you” with “great love.” This is a love far beyond human comprehension, a love that makes unwavering promises: “My love shall never depart from you, nor my covenant of peace be shaken.” The very mountains may crumble, but His commitment to your existence, your flourishing, and your peace will stand firm.
And then, the incredible transformation: “O afflicted one, storm-tossed and unconsoled, I lay your pavements in carnelians, and your foundations in sapphires.” God isn’t just reaffirming your existence; He’s declaring His intention to rebuild and beautify you, to make you radiant with precious stones. This isn’t about material wealth, but about the profound dignity and glory He bestows upon you simply because you are His chosen creation.
Allow this truth to sink into the deepest parts of your being. God, your Father in Heaven, intentionally chose to make you. Not someone else, not an idea, but you, with your unique gifts, your specific story, your individual soul. This is the foundation of your “stronger Yes to your own existence.” When you truly internalize this, it transforms how you see yourself. You are not a mistake, a random occurrence, or an afterthought. You are a deliberate act of divine love.
And how does this empower you to take this message into the world? When you walk in the unwavering confidence of being chosen and loved by God, you radiate that truth. Every encounter becomes an opportunity to reflect His love, His choice, His valuing of human life. You see others not just as people, but as fellow masterpieces, also chosen and loved by the same God. Your “Yes” to your own existence becomes an invitation for others to say “Yes” to theirs, to recognize the divine spark within themselves. You become a living testament to the truth that every single person is a deliberate and precious creation, worthy of love, dignity, and respect, because God, your Father in Heaven, chose to make them too.
Growing in Intimacy/Union with Jesus
This passage leads to greater intimacy with Jesus by revealing the very heart of the Trinitarian God, of whom Jesus is the perfect embodiment. Jesus, as the Incarnate Word, is the ultimate “Yes” of God to humanity. He Himself, through His life, death, and resurrection, perfectly lived out this message of enduring love and unwavering covenant, even when humanity “forsook” Him. When we recognize God the Father as our “Maker” who chooses to make us, we understand Jesus as the ultimate expression of that choice—the one through whom all things were made, and the one who came to redeem and restore our brokenness, laying the “pavements in carnelians” of our very souls. His sacrifice is the ultimate demonstration of God’s “enduring love” and “covenant of peace,” making His presence accessible and tangible in our daily lives, drawing us into a deeper and more personal relationship with the God who chose us from the beginning.
When Time Allows Reflect on the Posts in Library and Musings
Sharing
Jesus last words on Earth were to his disciples, can be found in Matthew Chap 28 when Jesus told his disciples, “Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Jesus calls all of us to share in his redemptive mission here on Earth. I would ask you to share this Scripture reflection with your family, your friends and your acquaintances, and then share it with a couple of individuals that you may may not be comfortable sharing with, keeping in mind always the words of Jesus, And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age
Author was assisted by AI in the drafting of this Post