The elementary school playground at recess time could be one of the most brutal realizations of worth.

I remember the days of lining up, captains being chosen, and then one by one the rest of us being picked to be on a team for a game of kickball. The tension grew as you waited, wondering when you would be chosen. How much did the captains value you as a teammate?

Nothing felt worse than being called last, because it felt like you weren’t really wanted or chosen at all.

The feeling of not being chosen cuts deep for both children and adults.

Deep down, we all have this need to feel desired and chosen. When we don’t feel desired or chosen, our relationships tend to break down.

The beautiful thing is that God has desired and chosen us way before we were even alive to know Him. Ephesians 1:5-6 tells us that it was God’s pleasure to adopt all of us as His children. He chose us from the beginning and made a way through Jesus Christ for us to be officially adopted into His family.

There should be no question in our mind whether God desires us in His family, because He has already chosen us. Now we just have to choose Him back.