I’m currently memorizing Isaiah 43—and let me tell you, it is worth every single second I spend on it and a dozen times more. (Isaiah 54 and 55 are just as good.)
Go on, read that verse over again. “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have... called you BY YOUR NAME; YOU ARE MINE.”
You are Mine.
Go on, read that verse over again. “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have... called you BY YOUR NAME; YOU ARE MINE.”
You are Mine.
Do you know just how many people in the world, past and present, who have struggled with the feeling of being homeless? Of having no one who cares for them. Unclaimed. Unwanted. Rejected. Cast off. Of being alone. Of being so sinful, so dirty, so unworthy, that no one could ever even look at them without cringing, let alone forgiving them and raising them up from the ashes.
Of not belonging to anyone.
I’m not very old at all, and I’m certainly not too experienced, but in my brief span, I’ve noticed that we as human beings struggle with the issue of belonging. On one hand, we don’t like the idea of being “beholden” or “obligated” to anyone, and we certainly don’t like being in servitude. (More on that another devotional.) But on the other hand, we NEED to belong. To something. To someone. To not be “unclaimed”. To not be adrift in a big, scary world with no one by your side, no one to look out for you and after you. To not be rejected and unwanted. (Those two words “rejected” and “unwanted” are two of the most frightening words in the English language. I know; I’ve felt them. They’re horrible.) And do you know what? Separate “belonging” into two words. “Be” “longing”. We literally “be longing” to belong.
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.”
I’m His. I belong to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He’s called me BY MY NAME. He knows everything about me. He loves me. I’m precious in His sight. He’s always with me. He never leaves me nor forsakes me; He cares for me now, always has, and always will. He wants me. He claims me. He redeems me. He forgives me.
I belong to Him.
And so do you.
