our daily bread

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Dexu Xia

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Jul 16, 2018, 1:36:00 AM7/16/18

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Belonging

The Lord who made you and helps you says: “Do not be afraid . . . my chosen one.” Isaiah 44:2 nlt

I’d been out late the night before, just as I was every Saturday night. Just twenty years old, I was running from God as fast as I could. But suddenly, strangely, I felt compelled to attend the church my dad pastored. I put on my faded jeans, well-worn T-shirt, and unlaced high-tops and drove across town.

I don’t recall the sermon Dad preached that day, but I can’t forget how delighted he was to see me. With his arm over my shoulder, he introduced me to everyone he saw. “This is my son!” he proudly declared. His joy became a picture of God’s love that has stuck with me all these decades.

The imagery of God as loving Father occurs throughout the Bible. In Isaiah 44, the prophet interrupts a series of warnings to proclaim God’s message of family love. “Dear Israel, my chosen one,” he said. “I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children” (vv. 2–3 nlt). Isaiah noted how the response of those descendants would demonstrate family pride. “Some will proudly claim, ‘I belong to the Lord,’” he wrote. “Some will write the Lord’s name on their hands” (v. 5 nlt).

Wayward Israel belonged to God, just as I belonged to my adoptive father. Nothing I could do would ever make him lose his love for me. He gave me a glimpse of our heavenly Father’s love for us.

Heavenly Father, we all come from families that are broken in one way or another. Thank You for loving us in that brokenness and for showing us what real love looks like.

God’s love for us offers us the sense of belonging and identity we all crave.

归属

造做你⋯⋯并要帮助你的耶和华如此说：“我所拣选的……不要害怕！”-以赛亚书44章2节

年轻时，我习惯在星期六深夜时还在外面溜达。当时我年仅二十，只想尽速逃离上帝。但有一天，我突然极其渴望去我父亲牧养的教会参加崇拜。我穿上褪色的牛仔裤、破旧的衬衫和解开鞋带的高帮鞋，随即驾车前往。

我已经不记得父亲当天讲道的内容了，然而我却不曾忘记当他见到我时，那喜出望外的模样。他把手臂搭在我的肩上，热切地让大家认识我，并自豪地说：“这是我儿子！”他的喜乐反映出上帝的慈爱，让我这数十年来仍难以忘怀。

上帝慈爱天父的形象贯穿了整本圣经。在以赛亚书44章，先知中断了一连串严厉的警告，转而传讲上帝关爱那些属于祂的子民：“我的仆人雅各、我所拣选的……我要将我的灵浇灌你的后裔，将我的福浇灌你的子孙”（2-3节）。以赛亚记载了这群属于上帝的百姓如何自豪地回应上帝，他写道：“这个要说‘我是属耶和华的’；……又一个要亲手写‘归耶和华的’。”（5节）

悖逆的以色列百姓是属于上帝的，如同我是属于我的养父。无论我做了什么，都不曾让我父亲停止爱我。我父亲让我窥见天父对祂儿女的爱。

天父，虽然我们的家庭都不完美，谢谢祢仍然爱我们，
并向我们显明何为真实的爱。