"We Are Precious In His Sight" - Revisited

Tomorrow is Father's Day 2021.  This was originally posted in 2015, in honor of my father.   Thought I would share it again, since I don't really have anything new to say.  Have a blessed and wonderful Father's Day tomorrow...celebrating those fathers that you love, and especially celebrating our heavenly Father, Who is the Father we ALL can trust. 

Original Post June 2015:

Yesterday was Father's Day...and as I posted this picture of me with my Daddy on my Facebook page,  several commented about how "precious" this picture was.  Yes, it was precious to me as well. I have been kicking around these thoughts and wanting to share them, but couldn't quite put it into the proper words.

I know that many people did not have such a wonderful father as I was blessed to have. I sometimes almost feel guilty when I share pictures such as this because I know there will be some who will be sad because of their own  loss of a great father, or because of their "lack" of a great father. I am fully aware that many either did not know their fathers at all, or if they did, they sometimes wish that they didn't because of the abuse, neglect, disappointments and sorrow that they endured because of him. 

All too often, our relationship with our earthly fathers skews our relationship with our Heavenly Father.  For those who have not had a loving, caring, appropriate relationship with an earthly father, it may be very difficult to understand, accept, or even consider that such a loving, caring, appropriate relationship could even be possible with our Heavenly Father.

The word "precious"means greatly valued, loved, cherished, too important to be wasted. 

God said to Israel in Isaiah 43:1-4 

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by your name;

You are Mine.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.

When you walk through the fire,

you shall not be burned,

nor shall the flame scorch you.

For I Am the Lord your God,

The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;

I gave Egypt for your ransom,

Ethiopia and Seba in your place.

Since you were PRECIOUS in My sight,

you have been honored,

And I have loved you; 

Therefore I will give men for you,

and people for your life."

Yes, I know this is talking about God's love for Israel, but I can dare to say that it is also talking about His great love for you and for me.  He has redeemed us through the blood of His precious Son, Jesus.  He has called us by name, and He has told us that we belong to Him, and that we are PRECIOUS in His sight.  

Further on in Isaiah, chapter 53, verse 4-5 He tells us about our Savior, Jesus the Messiah, and this is personal:

"Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows;

Yet we esteemed Him stricken, 

smitten by God, and afflicted.

But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

and by His stripes we are healed."

Jesus Himself tells us in Matthew 11:28-30...

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, 

and I will give you rest.

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, 

for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

And Jesus tells us how much God loves us in this most well-known scripture of all:

"For God so LOVED the world that He gave His only begotten Son,

that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

John 3:16

What I gather from these verses is that God would not have bothered to go to so much trouble and sorrow and grief on our behalf if we were not worth the cost to Him...if He did not see us as being "greatly valued, loved, cherished, too important to be wasted;"  i.e; PRECIOUS.

It is my hope that in thinking about these verses and so many, many more in God's Word, the Bible, that those of you who may be longing to be loved and cherished may realize that we do have a Heavenly Father Who truly does cherish us...and that He has totally declared us to be PRECIOUS in His sight...so much so that He was willing to send His very own PRECIOUS Son to die for us.

Romans 5:7-8 explains this even better:

"For scarcely for a righteous man will one die;

yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.

But GOD demonstrates His own LOVE toward us, 

in that while we were still sinners,

Christ died for us!"

If Christ was willing to die for us even while we were still sinners...imperfect, unlovely, perhaps not so precious in the eyes of the world, and yet, Christ was still willing to die for us...then that should surely show us that we are extremely PRECIOUS in God's sight.  

Not only did Christ die for us in our sinful state, but He actually made us joint heirs with Him...adopted into His family...children of God:

"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God.

For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear,

but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out 

"ABBA, Father,"  (Abba means Daddy)

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that

we are CHILDREN OF GOD,

and if children, 

then HEIRS, - HEIRS OF GOD AND JOINT HEIRS WITH CHRIST,

if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together."

Romans 8:14-17

This tells me that God loves me so much that I can even be bold enough to crawl up into His lap, and curl up and take a nap, knowing that my "Abba Father God" will carry me through the trials and temptations and sorrows of this world.  I can rest in Him, secure in His love, because He redeemed me with the blood of His very own PRECIOUS SON.  He did that even while I was still a sinner with no other hope of grace.  I was PRECIOUS  in His sight...and I can rest safely in His lap forever. And so can you, my friend. He did this for YOU as well...your HEAVENLY FATHER, Who loves you this much.

If you are feeling the weight of the world on your shoulders, and not sure you are secure in the lap of God, I hope these verses and words will help you find that place of comfort in the arms of Christ.

I love this song linked below....listen and know that you are not alone in this world. AND YOU ARE VERY PRECIOUS IN GOD'S SIGHT!

He Will Carry You, by Scott Wesley Brown

HERE is a link to another post about Father's Day

And HERE is ANOTHER link about Father's Day

And yet another special post in memory of my father, "My Father's Cane"

Quick Change Artist (Rerun)

(This is a "rerun", originally "aired" on 9/20/13, but nothing much has changed...I'm still that same "quick change artist"...and these thoughts are still right-on for me and my situation...and maybe yours as well! Read on...and if you didn't comment the last time, feel free to do so this time!)

Been kicking some thoughts around in my head this week, and never got around to putting them on paper, so now I will try to remember what they were.  Usually when I think I've got something really good to say, by the time I get around to saying it it no longer seems quite so special.  Perhaps things have happened to change my viewpoint, or to draw my attention to other topics even more significant. (In my mind, that is)

Earlier this week I was thinking about how I sometimes feel like the female version of Superman, not in the powerful superhero sense, but in the quick change of clothes in the phone booth from Clark Kent, Newspaper Reporter, to Superman.  But my quick change is just the opposite...like when I come home from my job as a church business administrator everyday, dressed semi-professionally, (dress pants, shoes, top/jacket depending on the season, etc.), the minute I walk in the door of my house at the end of the day, off come the shoes, the jewelry (why is it I feel naked when I go out the door if I don't have on my watch, rings, earrings, bracelet, necklace, but the minute I walk in the door of my house I suddenly feel like I am being strangled by too many "chains" around my body?)...and then I peel off my slacks, top, and grab the most comfy, loose fitting, somewhat stained and grungy t-shirt and capris, and slide my feet into the softest, lighter than air shoes (my new Skechers Go Walk shoes)
and then I breathe such a sigh of relief...I am home.
I am the real me again.  Not that I don't feel I am
the real me at my job, but that's the other me.  The
professional me who has to think, make decisions,
figure out problems, deal with weighty issues, sometimes financial, sometimes supervisory, sometimes unpleasant situations that fall on my shoulders because "that's your job".

Of course, I often have similar issues to deal with when I get home...make decisions, figure out problems, deal with weighty issues, OFTENTIMES financial, sometimes "supervisory"...and even deal with unpleasant situations because that's my job as a mother, wife, homemaker, cook, bill payer, etc....but when I'm home I'm on safe ground...I know I am beloved, treasured, and secure. I am not in danger of losing my position because I didn't handle something right, or forgot some very important deadline, or called in sick too often.  When I am home, I am free to be me. I can breathe...I can laugh, I can cry, I can get angry and be forgiven...I am loved unconditionally.

Now please don't get the wrong idea here, especially if you happen to know me at my place of employment and wonder if something has triggered all this...No, nothing has happened. I am just making general observations here...probably most people who are employed can relate to this no matter where they work.

I don't have any astounding revelations here or answers to these questions...just thinking out loud. One thing I do know for certain...even if I wasn't exactly beloved, treasured and secure in my home, I am beloved, treasured, and secure with my Lord.

"Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!"       I John 3:1

"In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins."  I John 4:10

"But God demonstrates His love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, 

Christ died for us."

Romans 5:8

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear..." I John 4:18a

Therefore, I do not fear that I will not be loved or accepted by my Heavenly Father...He loved me before I was even born...I am highly treasured by God...no matter what position I am in, what clothes I wear, or what I do to try to make myself appear righteous and noble...He loves me...just the way I am. My righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6)...without God, I am nothing. But in Christ, I am precious in His sight.  And so are you, dear friend, if you belong to Jesus.  And if you are not certain about that...ask Him to show you how much He loves you. You may be surprised at what you will discover.

This is the real me, taking a walk in the woods and loving that feeling of freedom
from pressure and deadlines...
On the journey of life...precious and beloved...as are you, my friend.

UPDATED PICTURE 6/18/15...This is the real me today, except I still have on my jewelry...but I can't
wait to get home and sit in my rocker on my front porch and "RELAX", like it says in the sign above my head!