I Belong to You

Ephesians 2:19, PHILLIPS
So you are no longer outsiders or aliens, but fellow-citizens with every other Christian—you belong now to the household of God.

Whenever you feel unloved, unwelcome, unsupported, or unworthy, remember Who you belong to. You are a priceless and precious treasure of the Lord. He loves you and gave Himself for you. In this life, in adolescence and adulthood, we often struggle to find “our place”. We think that we will find this in a community of people, in a family, in an activity. We try to make an identity for ourselves. We have all done it. You try to fit in with the popular group, or we go through a “rebel” stage and try to distance ourselves from a certain group, which essentially has the same effect as trying to join a group. No one likes to be an outsider. No one wants to be alone ALL of the time. Everybody “needs somebody sometimes” as the old song goes.

But why do we do this? Why should we, who are created in the very image of God, find ourselves clamoring for approval, for love, for acceptance, for affirmation? It is because at some point, we have forgotten that we already have a place. And it is in the arms and family of our Father.

Why do people come to church? Well, we have lots of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that God actually commanded us to do it (Hebrews 10:24). But if you were to ask a new church member or any Christian really, they would often give you this answer:

“I feel like I belong here.”

That’s awesome! Church, THE Church, should be a place where people feel welcomed, and it should be a place where you feel accepted, and loved. It is designed for that purpose. But did you know that even if the church had no one in it besides you, you would still belong? That’s because God wants you. I’ll say that again.

God. Wants. YOU.

If no one on earth ever chose to accept Him as their Lord and Father, He still would have sent JESUS to die for YOU.

Because He loves you like that, that’s why. He made you with a purpose in mind from the very beginning. People make the mistake of looking for their purpose. The simple truth is, life on earth was made for one purpose and that is bringing Him glory. You were made not only to enjoy God, but because He enjoys you. The purpose is in your very creation. You, the person sitting at your computer or somewhere looking at a phone screen, the same person who doesn’t always see the benefit of even existing let alone being known by anyone, you – were created in a very special way.

The Bible says that God created all of mankind in His image (Genesis 1:27). That means that your very person – from your quirks to your other quirks – was created with Him in mind. Your spirit is special. It is precious. It is dear. It has a connection with the greatest creator the world has ever known. No other creature on earth can say that. Bugs, dogs, cats, dinosaurs, they all were made by God but only you were made with His image on the inside of you. But you know what? Just because that image (your spirit) is on the inside of you, doesn’t mean that it is hard to see. It may be that you just forgot how to see it, or have never been told that it’s there. God sees it every time He looks at you. And He never really stops looking at you either. He waits for you. He longs for you. He sees the purpose He put in your creation, and eagerly longs for you to realize it.

So come to church, but more importantly, come to God. It is only there, in the arms of the One who loves you most, and knows your purpose best, that you will find your identity, as so many of us already have.

Acts 17:28
For in Him we live and move and have our being; …For we are also His offspring.

If you are looking for a church, we invite you to hang with us at Breakthrough Worship Center every Sunday and Wednesday at 11am and 7pm, respectively. We would love to get to know you, and get to know you more. This Sunday (the 21st of September) is our first time celebrating Back to Church Sunday! We will have a whole service geared toward seeing YOU with us as we worship and learn, and live out our purpose in Christ together.

Grace and peace, Leon 😄