Bible Reading: Psalm 8:1-9
What are mortals that you should think of us, mere humans that you should care for us? For you made us only a little lower than God, and you crowned us with glory and honor. Psalm 8:4-5
IF YOU COULD trail a superstar for a day, you would see everything people do for the fabulously famous. Fans honor them. Bodyguards protect them. And everyone makes special arrangements for them.
Before you feel wretchedly jealous because you never get that kind of treatment, listen up: God does those things for you, because you are important to him.
- He honors you with special attention, as Psalm 8:4-5 describes.
- He sends his angels to guard you. Psalm 91: 11 says, “He orders his angels to protect you wherever you go.”
- He is making special arrangements for you. John 14:2 says, “There are many rooms in my Father’s home, and I am going to prepare a place for you. If this were not so, I would tell you plainly.”
You’re probably no superstar-not to the tabloids, anyway. So how can God be so good to you? God accepts and honors you because of what Jesus Christ did on your behalf. He died for your sins, taking away any and every offense that made you less-than-acceptable to God.
Instead of wondering, “How can God like me?” a better question might be, “How can God not like and accept me?” If you are a Christian, you are a child of God. John 1: 12 says, “To all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.” God isn’t like some earthly dads who can’t fit you into their schedule or find anything nice to say about you. He’s the perfect Father. Because you are his child, he will always accept you.
You still might figure that God sees you as a failure when you sin, shaking his head and wishing you would shape up. But God’s love for you doesn’t change when you sin. You can bet that your sin grieves God. He gets the same feeling you do when a friend hurts you-except that God doesn’t pout like people do.
So how does a friend fix things up with you after hurting you? He or she comes back to apologize and ask your forgiveness. First John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.” When you blow it in your relationship with God, get things right with him ASAP. He loves you too much. Don’t put it off.
REFLECT: Make a list of anything you have done or said in the Last few days that grieved God. Confess your wrong to God and receive his forgiveness.
PRAY: Write your prayer of thanks for God’s forgiveness.
