God Promises That We Are His
Do you know that you belong to God?
Verse of the Day
‘And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago.’
Today’s Devotional
What are the things (or people) that you claim as your own? The easiest ones for me are my husband and my kids – they belong to me. I have a special stake in their welfare and what’s going on with them. I value them in a different way than I value a stranger at the grocery store.
Something happened along the way to make these people “mine”. For my husband, it was when we married. We declared that we belong to each other. For my biological daughter, it happened the moment I became aware that I was pregnant. She became mine, although at that point I did not yet know she was a “she”. For my adopted daughter, it was more of a process, but at some point along the way she became mine.
For us, something happened when we decided that we believe in Jesus. We became included in God’s family. He declares that we are His very own. We belong to God.
One of our basic needs as humans is a sense of belonging. In Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, our need for love and belonging comes right after our physical needs and the need for safety. Much of human behavior is driven by the need to belong. We need to belong somewhere, and often we spend our lives searching for where we belong.
If you believe in Jesus, you belong to God. In fact, God tells you that you are a prized and precious possession. “The Lord will not reject his people; he will not abandon his special possession.” (Psalms 94:14) Then in 1 Peter 2:9 we are told that we “are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession.” And in Romans 8:15, we are reminded again of the gift of God’s adoption of us. “So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children.”
Problems arise for us as we try to belong in places and with people who do not also belong to God. We simply don’t fit, no matter how hard we try.
As a seal of our belonging to God, He gives us a gift to go along with this promise. The gift of the Holy Spirit. Much like my wedding ring signifies that I belong to my husband. Although the Holy Spirit is much more powerful than a wedding ring. Because God is the very best gift giver.
There are moments in life when we feel like we are exactly where we are supposed to be. There’s a peace that envelopes us in those moments. I believe today’s promise offers to envelop us in that same sense of peace. We belong. Not just to a group of humans that we like. We belong to the Almighty God. We are special to Him. He has great care and concern for us. If we could believe and accept this promise, it would likely change the way we see ourselves and the world. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
Where have you tried to belong that didn’t work out that way you had hoped?
How has God shown you that you belong to Him?
What have you done with God’s offer of belonging?
How can you thank Him today for His acceptance of you and your belonging?