YOU'RE MINE

mine (pronoun): that which belongs to me

 “Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you. I’ve called your name. You’re mine.” Isaiah 43:1

Do you ever feel like you are about to “lose it”?  Are you barely surviving with your plate piled too high, multi-tasking constantly, wondering if you are doing anything well?

So many friends I care about are running on fumes trying to meet too many needs, too many deadlines, too many expectations. They greet me with tired eyes and stressed-out sighs, and my heart sighs too.

Unfortunately, it seems like much of our stress comes from “belonging” to lots of people and organizations. Our families need us, our workplaces depend on us, our friends and social groups look for our responses, and our community counts on us.  Wonderful, important things and people fill our lives, and there is so much to be grateful for. So much good.

Yet as much as we enjoy belonging to these, sometimes we get overwhelmed. Because the belonging requires a lot of us–our time, our energy, and our emotions. If we don’t perform well, if we let down, if we don’t give them what they need…will they just “let us go”?

We secretly fear that might happen if we can’t keep it up.

Where–to whom–will we belong if we fail?

Jesus says, “You’re mine.”

And the best thing about belonging to him? It does not depend on us. We don’t have to DO a bunch of things. We don’t have to PROVE ourselves. We don’t have to STRIVE to keep up.

He has called us by name. He has redeemed us. We belong to him, and that is not something that we can earn or something we can lose. He has already done it all. This price–our price–was paid in full a long time ago.

All we have to do is believe it.

“When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you. When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down.

When you’re in between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end–

Because I am God, your personal God, The Holy of Israel, your Savior. I paid a huge price for you…” Isaiah 9:2-3

When we neglect to do or say the right thing.

When we completely forget about the appointment, the field trip, the meeting.

When we react harshly and hurt someone we love.

When we have to choose between two or more important events knowing someone will be disappointed.

When it happens. We experience the heartache of being “let go” by a boss, a friend, a child, a spouse.

He is our personal God. Our Savior. We matter so much to him that he gave his own life for ours. He will hold us and help us through every hard thing, faithfully and graciously giving us what we need.

Invite Him in:

Let yourself rest in the joy and freedom of belonging to Jesus. Open up your worn-out heart to the protection, the comfort, and the reassuring presence of your personal God, your Savior who loves you most. He will never let you go.