Last night I pulled out an old drawing. Chosen

This time I asked a new question. What is it like to ride the palanquin to the groom’s house?

In many Indian movies, the bride is in tears because she leaves her comfort zone, her family, and is now being led to a new family. In very traditional Indian homes, the parents arrange the marriage of their children based on customs, beliefs, traditions, and numerology or the alignment of the stars. Typically, the bride trusts her elders and goes along with the decision. There are variations to this sort of arrangement in the present times.

The palanquin ride to the groom’s house is a time of reflection, mixed with lament and hope.

I didn’t have a palanquin when I got married in South India. But I remember standing outside the church doors in a classic white saree, waiting and thinking: Is everything in place? Wow, everything changes after this. Should I? Will it be okay? Is this right? The palanquin journey is intended to treat the bride as a princess and give her reflective space after all the family filled festivities.

Looking back, I wonder whether that moment outside the church was my own version of the palanquin ride (although my time for reflection was before the wedding). Amid all the preparations and celebrations, there was a moment when I had to pause and consider the life that lay ahead.

Biblically speaking, being chosen by God is about God’s initiative, grace, and love. But it also includes human agency. Life includes god’s initiative and human agency.

Perhaps I am beginning to see being chosen differently. God’s initiative does not depend on the perfection of our response. We may go willingly, hesitate, resist, or obey while still wrestling with God. God’s invitation continues, and God’s love continues to engage us. We are chosen, and chosen again, not because our participation is always wholehearted, but because God’s grace continues to meet us.

Being chosen is not merely a moment in which a decision is made about us. It can also describe a relationship in which we are continually invited, engaged, and met by love as we respond, resist, and grow. Perhaps it’s not only about being chosen but what do we become (in my previous post I talked more about the responsibility of being chosen)

I also asked something else – why does the bride look drenched? Can you see the water patches on her saree? I chose to leave the coloring error as is because it reminded me of God’s unfailing love as God parted the Red Sea, eventually drowning the enemy. Now the palanquin ride is filled with confidence in God’s powerful love.