I am not an afterthought!

“…according as he has chosen us in him before [the] world’s foundation, that we should be holy and blameless before him in love; 5 having marked us out beforehand…”
Ephesians 1:4-5 Darby Translation (DARBY)
 
Have you ever organized a dinner party or a braai and at the last minute you remembered someone that you should have invited? And so, you figure out how to invite them without letting them feel like an afterthought? You’ve most likely done that or been that person who got the last-minute invite. Feeling like an afterthought isn’t great. This is how many people see our redemption story, too. God created the world and us. We messed it up, big time. Then God had to come up with a plan, and He did: send Jesus to fix the mess. In other words, we were kind of an afterthought. How does that make you feel?
 
“…according as he has chosen us in him before [the] world’s foundation…”
 
God was not merely reacting to the failure of Adam and the sin problem that it caused and no, God was not caught by surprise. God foresaw it all and had a plan before it was needed. This plan was set in motion “before the foundation of the world”, before creation. Before God created you, He set things up so that you could live in victory and enjoy the abundant life. He chose you before He created the universe.
 
That’s worth saying aloud: “I was chosen (in Him) before creation. I am not an afterthought. God wanted me and chose me to be a part of His family.”
 
God had a plan (before anything) and in His plan He chose you. As the Mirror Bible puts it, “before we were lost in Adam, God found us in Christ!”
 
“Most of us would not have created the world and man if we knew the heartache and terrible sacrifice that act would cost. God is not a man, and in His judgment (which is the correct judgment) the prize was worth all the cost.” (Andrew Wommack’s Living Commentary)
 
“For this is how much God loved the world—he gave his one and only, unique Son as a gift. [God proved he loved the world by giving his Son.] So now everyone who believes in him will never perish but experience everlasting life.”
John 3:16 The Passion Translation (TPT) – brackets TPT footnotes
 
God loves you! He loves you so much and proved it by giving Jesus as the payment for our sinfulness. You were not an afterthought! God wanted you and He chose you. Long before you thought of God, He thought of you and His thoughts towards you are only good (see Jeremiah 29:11-13).  Can you see how valuable you are to Him? Can you see how much He loves you?

“I was chosen (in Him) before creation. I am not an afterthought. God wanted me and chose me to be a part of His family.”