{"id":1115,"date":"2019-09-17T05:55:18","date_gmt":"2019-09-17T12:55:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diannebarker.com\/?p=1115"},"modified":"2019-09-17T06:27:16","modified_gmt":"2019-09-17T13:27:16","slug":"selected-another-word-worthy-of-our-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diannebarker.com\/?p=1115","title":{"rendered":"Selected\u2014Another Word Worthy of Our Study"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Selected\u2014another word worthy of our study. We\u2019ve looked at chosen<\/em> and designated<\/em>. Selected<\/em> is a synonym for both. It means exclusive, elite, privileged (thank you, Thesaurus).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The thought takes me back to high school when I was selected\nfor membership in a couple honor clubs. A little country girl\u2026part of these\nesteemed groups! I\u2019d been selected because of my academic achievement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About that time a desire (which had nothing to do with honor\nclubs) began growing in my heart\u2014to be a news reporter\u2026of all things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where in the world would a little country girl come up with\nthat? I only knew God put it in my heart and gifted me for the work. During\nhigh school I excelled in English. After graduating\u2014just sixteen with only my\ndream and a gift in English\u2014I applied for a job at our local newspaper. I had nothing\nto offer\u2026no experience\u2026just a country girl good in English. I didn’t make a\nmemorable impression. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I started college still nourishing my dream of rushing off to cover the raging fire and the gruesome murder. I guess ordinary folks wouldn’t find that appealing. Years later, of course, I understood the impact of those tragedies, but such events held excitement for a young journalist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I stopped by the newspaper to remind the editor of my interest, my skills still weren’t needed. On my third visit during my junior year of college, persistence paid off. I landed a part-time position writing about news and social events. How could I ever do anything else? My blood ran printer’s ink. I didn\u2019t yet realize God had selected<\/em> me for this. Have you considered that God selected you for a special purpose?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Have you considered that God selected you for a special purpose? <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n

A few weeks after I began working at the newspaper, an editor asked if I’d be interested in taking over a weekly column, “The Entertainment Whirl. Country girl becomes a columnist!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my first column published just before my nineteenth\nbirthday, I briefly mentioned entertainment, only to say I felt baffled by the\nshort-term-marriage pattern developing in Hollywood. Soon to be married and\nmisty-eyed, I offered idealistic suggestions for a happy relationship that goes\nthe distance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In following weeks I shared more personal thoughts and injected my Christian faith. Being young and confident I had answers to life’s big questions, I didn’t hesitate to open my heart to readers I’d never met. After a few weeks the editor suggested changing the heading to reflect the content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since one of my college professors, Dr. Kenneth Spaulding,\nhad shown interest in my writing, I asked him to think about an appropriate\ntitle. On Friday afternoon in the newsroom, I had finished my column for\nSunday’s paper except for a quote I wanted at the end. Moments after I found it\nin Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations,<\/em>\nthe telephone rang\u2014Dr. Spaulding suggesting “Of Cabbages and Kings.” I\nhad just typed that quote from Through\nthe Looking-Glass <\/em>by Lewis Carroll to end my column.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The heading \u201cOf Cabbages and Kings\u201d provided freedom to\nwrite about diverse topics; and for the next seventeen years, I shared my life\nwith thousands of readers. Many I’ve met since then have mentioned a favorite\ncolumn, now a frayed yellow clipping saved in their Bible. A readership survey\nonce ranked my column third after the sports page and Dear Abby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the years I often encountered readers suggesting I\npublish them in a book. I published Cabbages\nand Kings\u2014Reflections on Living Abundantly in Christ<\/em> in 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the newspaper I also covered many religious events\u2014area-wide crusades and the annual Appalachian Preaching Mission. One day I received in the mail a note from my pastor\u2019s wife, along with a clipping from Decision<\/em> magazine about a Christian writers conference in Minneapolis, headquarters for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. She thought I might be interested in attending. I asked the publisher to send me and he agreed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There I met Dr. Sherwood E. Wirt, founding editor of Decision<\/em>, published by BGEA. The next\nyear Billy Graham held a crusade in Knoxville. I asked the publisher to send me\nto cover it and he agreed. The crusade made national headlines with the visit\nof President Richard Nixon. Through Dr. Wirt\u2019s influence, I was selected<\/em> by the crusade\u2019s executive\ncommittee to write a commemorative book about the event. Billy Graham in Big Orange Country<\/em> was my first book. I was\ntwenty-four.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Four years later I left the newspaper to be a stay-at-home mom, a decision I\u2019ve never regretted. I continued writing my column at home and more books. Lt. Clebe McClary, who lost a arm and eye in Vietnam, asked me to write his story. Through him I met his high-school friend, Harold Morris, who at that time was in Georgia State Penitentiary serving a double-life sentence for armed robbery and murder after being convicted by the false testimony of two companions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clebe and his wife Deanna visited him in prison and shared the\nhope he could have by giving his life to Christ. Later in his cell, he accepted\nChrist as Savior and Lord. We included the story in Clebe\u2019s book, Living Proof<\/em>. I told Harold he had an\namazing story and I\u2019d love to write it someday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few months later, he was miraculously paroled. He\ngraduated from Bible college, and God opened doors to speak to young people\nabout the dangers of alcohol and drugs. We stayed in touch and I often reminded\nhim I wanted to write his book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Someone sent Dr. James Dobson a tape of Harold speaking at a\nyouth event. He used it on the Focus on the Family radio broadcast, and the\nprogram received the greatest response of any program to that date. Speaking requests\npoured in from across the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A health crisis interrupted his speaking ministry\u2014throat\ncancer. While recovering from surgery and follow-up treatment, he decided to\nwrite his story to continue having an impact on youth, whatever the outcome of his\nillness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Dobson had offered to help find a publisher. When he\nreceived the manuscript, he decided to pursue an idea that had been simmering\nand organized his own publishing company. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Twice Pardoned<\/em> was\nthe first book for Focus on the Family Publishing, a bestseller before publication\nwith a pre-sale of 85,000 copies. It quickly soared to number one on the\nnational Christian bestsellers list in 1986. Thirty-three years later, it\u2019s\nstill available on Amazon and still changing lives (1.5 million copies in\nprint).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Gospels Jesus selected<\/em> his disciples, saying \u201cFollow me.\u201d He extends the same invitation to us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the Gospels Jesus selected his disciples, saying \u201cFollow me.\u201d He extends the same invitation to us. <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n

I followed the impressions of my heart and pursued opportunities that God presented. It was all by his decision and his design. Only he knows why he selected<\/em> me to declare his praise through writing and speaking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s talk about your life. What are the dreams and desires of your heart? Don\u2019t be afraid to dream big. God created you for His glory, and nothing is impossible with him. He selected <\/em>you. That means you’re exclusive, elite, privileged.<\/p>\n\n\n\nGod selected you. That means you're exclusive, elite, privileged. <\/a><\/span>Click To Tweet<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n

Be sensitive to the leading of his Holy Spirit. Who would\u2019ve thought sending a brief note about a writing conference could affect someone\u2019s life so dramatically? Don\u2019t underestimate the value of a seemingly small gesture. God may use it in a surprising way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’d love to hear how God used a small gesture in a mighty way in your life. Please leave a comment…and share this with your friends!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a9 Dianne Barker 2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Selected\u2014another word worthy of our study. We\u2019ve looked at chosen and designated. Selected is a synonym for both. It means exclusive, elite, privileged (thank you, Thesaurus). The thought takes me back to high school when I was selected for membership in a couple honor clubs. A little country girl\u2026part of these esteemed groups! I\u2019d been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[413,9,414,415,412],"class_list":["post-1115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general","tag-chosen","tag-dianne-barker","tag-following-jesus","tag-god-uses-small-things","tag-selected-another-word-worthy-of-our-study"],"yoast_head":"\nSelected\u2014Another Word Worthy of Our Study - Dianne Barker<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"God selected you. 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