I am Qualified. Colossians 1:12

  "Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light." NKJV
  "Always thanking the Father. He has enabled you to share in the inheritance that belongs to his people, who live in the light." JCB

Definition of qualified. 1 a : fitted (as by training or experience) for a given purpose : competent. b : having complied with the specific requirements or precedent conditions (as for an office or employment) : eligible. 2 : limited or modified in some way. qualified approval. Merriam-Webster Dictionary.

  (I just discovered it's possible to copy and paste things into the blog! That's way better than expecting my morning foggy brain to remember what was read a few seconds ago!)

  A woman at church was led to lend me a book by Richard Rohr, "The Naked Now". With nervousness and a whole lot of doubt she handed it to me on Sunday. I am thankful she rose above her fears and didn't disregard the Quiet Whisper urging her to pass it on.
  I've only read a few chapters and am fascinated (as well as being stretched) by what is being taught. Richard's writing has challenged me to think about how I think about things. Today's definition is a great opportunity to practice these ideas; to look at the duality, the seemly opposite meanings of "Qualified". To think about how one and two apply. To uncover how duality can become unity.
  I've shared this before but it's such a profound idea, I keep needing to revisit it, to pull it apart: The Mandarin word for crisis is written with two figures: one means danger, the other opportunity. It's still a crisis but by recognizing within danger lay opportunity, it changes our mindset about whatever trials come our way. It opens our eyes to the blessings in the difficulties. By doing this, a crisis becomes neither good nor bad in and of itself. It becomes a rich experience.
  So how does this idea apply to being qualified?
  Having modified us through the gift of the Holy Spirit (2), we are then fitted for a given purpose (1). A purpose that is waaaay outside the box of traditional thinking because it is beyond anything we could imagine or expect.
  The woman at church, in passing me the book, fulfilled her purpose in that very moment. Despite her fears, God had prepared her beforehand through her own journey with Jesus to enable her to follow His lead on this.
  Which means every single event in her, and our, life leads to a point in time where the sum total of  experience come to fruition.

  I think my brain is about to explode.
  As the clock ticks, each second is a point of completion...Each tick is a starting point as well.
  It's a wow moment. It's a great "Alpha and Omega" realization about the nature of God which, with my finite human understanding, I will never, ever be able to put down on paper.
  It's no wonder we are encouraged to be in Christ, through whom all things are possible. That way the ticking clock becomes our beating hearts.
  Lord, forgive me for trying to define who You are and limiting my understanding with this very tiny brain. I am in awe of the vastness of Your Being. I am deeply grateful that You have qualified me into Your presence through the sacrifice of Jesus.
  Thank You that it's possible for me to embrace these ideas and to find within my heart further forgiveness and grace where it needs to be applied because, in the end, great good has come out of great evil. AMEN!
  And a blanket of peace wraps itself around my soul because God has shown me what redemption really means.