Daily Recharge
Mal Fletcher

You're No Accident!

03 July 2006

Isaiah 49:1-2 '… Before I was born the LORD called me; from my birth he has made mention of my name. He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver.' (NIV)

You are not an accident of birth. God doesn't have accidents! The fact that you are here at all is the result of divine providence, God's hand guiding history. The fact that you are called to be a Christian and set apart for God's great plan, proves again that he is very deliberate with you. Now that you're living for him, the Lord wants to declare, even to people that come from afar, that he formed you and set you apart. God gave you a name before you were born. That means that he was involved in shaping your nature and your destiny, your calling, before you were born. He's fitted you with the nature you need to fulfil the purpose he has for your life. You were born for the work he has you doing now and the work you will grow into over time. There's nothing accidental about your life at all. There is purpose in your existence. Even when it seems that nothing much is happening for you, there's a purpose in it. There are times when he will hide you in the shadow of his hand. He will put you his quiver, like a sharpened arrow awaiting its appointed task and time. Yet even then, when you're itching to go and wondering why God is working so slowly, you can remember that he's keeping you close to himself. You're not in some storeroom somewhere, momentarily forgotten while God attends to more important matters, or helps more important people. No, you're in his quiver; you're on his person and carried by him at all times.

Prayer: 'Father, I know that you have a very deliberate purpose for my future. Shape the nature that you've given me into something that really hits the mark for you. And help me to remember that, even in the slow times, you don't forget me.'