Last Picked

Sometimes there are events in our lives that when we look back on them as adults we wonder….”How was that a good idea?”

My memory brings me back to PE Class. At the time we called it Gym Class. There were various things that we would engage in during our time of physical activity, but amidst them was a dreaded moment that seemed to eclipse any or all of the fun. This was the “picking of teams”.

Somehow, the adults of the time, thought it a good idea to have two kids be ‘captains’ who picked their team. Of course it was always the confident kids that quickly nominated themselves to the task. The gym teacher, simply wanting to move on with the activities, said fine….and so the “picking” began.

Friends were always picked first and of course those with physical skills for the sport at hand. The first several picks were usually met by a great deal of enthusiasm and cheer.

As the teams grew and the choices moved beyond friends or those with physical skills, the task seemed to take on a sort of drudgery. There were always those kids you knew were going to be picked last, because, well, they always were. They knew it too.

The captains would change from looking for those with the best sporting abilities, to those who would simply by the lesser of a liability. All of this was unspoken yet the sound of this painful discourse seemed to bellow through the gymnasium.

I sit here as an adult wondering how other adults ever thought this was a good idea. I can feel a pit in my stomach as I recall the faces of these kids in my mind.

Unfortunately this isn’t the only time in our lives we can be left to feeling this way. There are many times and things in life that cause us to feel last picked and least wanted. Sometimes it’s a job we don’t get, a social situation that goes wrong, a friendship that’s unrequited. Sometimes in our lives we feel like we’re that last kid waiting to be picked, appreciated, and cheered for.

Here’s the thing though; God picks us first, always.

To God we are each his number one player and He picks us with enthusiasm and cheer! God has a completely different strategy than those silly kids in gym class. When God has a plan He usually picks first the ones the world would pick last.

“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” –Matthew 20:16

Remember Moses? He couldn’t speak well. His communication skills were lacking, yet God picked him to “communicate” His desires to Pharaoh.

Remember Gideon? As Gideon sits terrified threshing wheat on the wine press floor affraid of being seen, God calls him to a job. God wants him to lead his people against the Midianites. When God first address Gideon He says “Greetings mighty warrior”. You can just picture Gideon looking over his shoulder thinking “Who me???”

Then we see King David. David was a man who had humble beginnings as the youngest in his house and as a shepherd. When Samuel comes to David’s father’s house in search of the next king, David isn’t even considered. His father doesn’t even bother calling him in from the field and instead just gathers his other sons.

Do you see a pattern here? Well, Moses led Gods people out of Egypt. Gideon became an incredible warrior for God, and David became King of Israel.

These aren’t the only people God worked through, but just a few to set an example for my point.

These people were all the ones last picked by the world, but first picked by God.

Don’t allow the value cast on you by the world to define who you are. You are Gods child, His beloved.

Are you in a time of your life where you feel like the last one picked? Are you standing there waiting to be settled for? If that’s the case, know this…

“And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^[b] neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love.  No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.”–Romans 8:38-39

You are Gods first pick always. There is no skill set required or ability preferred. When we show up with the willingness to allow God to work in our lives we can do all things.

"For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."-Philippians 4:13

When your team captain is Christ you will always be His star player and first pick.

-Pastor Patti