I am...

“It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, but if you trust the LORD, you are safe.” Proverbs 29:25 GNT
Do you worry about what others think of you?
That kind of thinking can lead to disastrous results including fear, low self-esteem and failure to lead a confident , productive life.
To change how you think about yourself, try this instead: As you read through the Bible, make a list of "I am" statements that reflect how God sees us.
Here's a few to get you started:

• I am important to God - Psalm 139:16 "Your eyes saw my embryo, and on your scroll every day was written that was being formed for me, before any one of them had yet happened." No human being I know cares so much about me to keep track of the details of my life like God does!
• I am in God's thoughts - Isaiah 49: 14-16 "The people of Zion said, “The Lord has turned away and forgotten us.” The Lord answered, “Could a mother forget a child who nurses at her breast? Could she fail to love an infant who came from her own body? Even if a mother could forget, I will never forget you. A picture of your city is drawn on my hand. You are always in my thoughts!"
• I am cared for - Matthew 6:25-26 " I tell you not to worry about your life. Don’t worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t life more than food or clothing? Look at the birds in the sky! They don’t plant or harvest. They don’t even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren’t you worth more than birds?"

Now keep going to see what other verses you can find that show how God thinks about you. Post your list somewhere that you can see it each day and read over it often.
For those who are constantly overcome by thoughts and feelings of insecurity and fear, seeing yourself through God's eyes will bring healing and a sense of security in the Father's love.

"Family" moments

From now on you are not strangers and people who are not citizens. You are citizens together with those who belong to God. You belong in God’s family. Ephesians 2: 19 NLV

Tuesday evening, we went to see an Altoona Curve baseball game. We sat on the third base line, down in the first section of seats where we had a great view and a fair chance of capturing a foul ball in the stands.

There weren't too many children at the game because it was the first day of school, but in our immediate section, there were a group of four boys with their dads / granddads and another family with a boy and girl.Naturally, each time a ball was hit in our direction, they all scrambled to see if they could get the foul ball.

By the 7th inning, the boys had 2 balls. The little girl in front of us was growing more upset because she didn't have one yet. Then it happened. A foul ball was hit on the field just below where we were sitting. The 3rd base coach trotted over to retrieve it and the kids all gathered at the rail, hoping he'd chuck it to them. The boys kept pushing the little girl aside as they jostled for the best position.
The coach must have had a mischievous streak because he tossed the ball over all their heads into the stands behind us. A woman sitting three seats down from me was able to get the ball before the boys descended on it like vultures.

She grinned and promptly handed the ball to the girl in front of us as the boys expressed their displeasure. All the adults around us hooted with delight and applauded the woman's actions.
"If I'd have gotten the ball, I was going to do the same thing," another fan said.
It was a "family" moment as the people in our small section of the stands were united together, caring about one young member.

We are so privileged to be part of God's family, not tied together for a moment by a single incident at a ball game, but joined together for eternity by the bond we share in Christ!

Father, help me to share that bond with others so they may know the eternal joy of being part of your family as well! Amen.

Adopted

None of us can choose who our parents will be. But  what a blessing it is that parents can choose their children! Whether the child is planned for and loved from the time they're conceived or actually chosen by the parents through adoption, a child can enter into life knowing they are loved and wanted.

A couple who are friends of my family travelled to China several years ago to adopt a little girl with special needs to round out their family of two boys. Over the years, this young girl has blessed the family and all who know her because of her happy nature and ability to find a way to accomplish whatever she sets out to do in spite of her handicaps.

Her adoption prompted the couple to develop a ministry to encourage  others seeking to adopt, both internationally and here in the US. Because of their abundance of love, the couple recently returned to China to adopt two more  special needs children who have also blessed those of us who know them.

In a spiritual sense, when we choose to follow Christ, we are adopted by God into his family.

"An adopted child is no less a son or daughter than my natural born children. And to apply that in a spiritual sense, I  have learned that to be a son of God makes me no less his son than his true son [Jesus]. Adoption has changed my life. But it's also changed my relationship with my Father in heaven." ~Billl Schick.



“But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.” John 1:12-13 NLT