Contemplative Bible Reading

Malachi 1:2-3 (The Living Bible)

“I have loved you very deeply,” says the LORD.

But you retort, “Really? When was this?”

And the LORD replies, “I showed my love for you by loving your father, Jacob. I didn’t need to. I even rejected his very own brother, Esau, and destroyed Esau’s mountains and inheritance, to give it to the jackals of the desert…”

The first part of these verses show how stupid we can be. “Really God, when did you love us?” How can a person be so dense as to even ask such a question? Well, I’m glad that today we aren’t as pitiful as those people back then (not). We’re worse than they were.

The second part of these verses shows how God sometimes rejects some people. He chooses through whom He will perform works on earth. When he chooses some, he rejects others for that work. Today, He chooses some people to travel the world and preach. He chooses some other people to stay home and trudge through their daily employment to earn the money to send the others. In the same example, He chooses some to stay home and live near their adorable grandchildren while He sends others out of the country to rarely see their friends, children, and adorable grandchildren.

He chooses some; He rejects some. Our plight is to play our role the He has chosen. And, while doing our role, let’s be thankful for a task that he has chosen.