Clay in the Hands

We hear a lot about identity and self-worth these days.  People are searching for meaning and validation.  We are wired that way.  We want to think that our lives matter.

Most often we turn to other people for that validation and it is natural to think that we can find worth in what others think about us.  The problem is, even the best people are inherently selfish.  Even with best intentions, we will eventually let one another down.  So to put our trust in what others think of us as a basis for our own identity and worth is trust misplaced.

The author of 1 John reminds us of something very important in chapter 3 verse 1.  Let his words filter down to your deepest self today:

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

We find identity not in what other people think of us but in knowing that as believers in Jesus Christ, we are God’s children!  Praise God for this truth – this life-giving truth!

Be blessed today!

This morning I was reminded, in a unique way, of God’s blessings.  I was in my office at my desk working when I began to hear something on my windows.  The sun was up and shining through but in the midst of the bright sunlight, rain was gently blowing against the glass.  While I was looking at blue sky and sunlight, rain was falling.

This simple experience reminded me that God’s blessings are new each day.

Whatever you face this day, remember that God’s grace is sufficient and his strength is enough.

Live with peace and joy today!

Playing it safe rarely wins the prize.  But it’s easier to play it safe.  Risk is . . . well, its risky.  We like comfort and security and once we find it, we don’t want to risk it.

But God did not create us to live lives of comfort.  We can have security in our relationship with God, but our worldly security is not really a concern for God.  Paul said, “to live is Christ and to die is gain.”  In other words, when our priority is pleasing God and living our lives to fulfill his desire for us, then there really isn’t a risk.

God wants to do immeasurably more than you can imagine in and through you today.  Will you let him?

I have challenged our deacon body in their daily reading to read through 1 and 2 Peter over the next month. Today’s reading is 1 Peter 1:13-25. As I read this passage this morning, even though I have read it in the past, something spoke to me more clearly than ever before.

The author of this little letter reminded us of the value we hold in God’s eyes.

So often, we buy into the lie that we are not worth much. Some have heard from parents or others, “You will never amount to anything.” Hateful people have called us “losers.” At certain times in our lives, circumstances have left us feeling like no one cares.

Allow this passage from 1 Peter to speak truth into your life today :

¹⁸ For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

You are worth more than all the gold and silver in the world. You are worth the very breath and blood of the son of God. The Father paid your ransom with the life of his one and only son!

Stop buying into the lie that your life doesn’t count. You are worth everything to God – not because of anything you have done but because he loves you.

And that is all that really matters!

Live into that love today.