Several years ago as my son’s bus pulled up near our house to whisk him away to another day of kindergarten, I reached down, gently pulled him close, and spoke softly into his ear, “Remember who you belong to.” As he took steps towards his bus beneath a clear blue sky, beautiful green grass surrounded his well-worn velcro sneakers. Suddenly he turned back towards me and said, “Mom, remember who YOU belong to.”
Years before that day, I was sitting listening to Dr. Terry Wardle speak at a Healing Care seminar and he shared that this phrase is something he used to say to his kids when he would drop them off at school: “Remember who you belong to!” “Wow,” I thought to myself, “I think we all need to be reminded of that every day.”
Since my own son, Isaiah, started going to preschool and every day since I have tried to remember to say this to him. There were mornings where before the thought could even cross my mind, he’d tug on my shirt beckoning my ear close to his lips and he’d whisper, “Can you say that thing?” to which I’d respond with a smile, “Remember who you belong to.”
Today was different though. Today for the first time, Isaiah said the words back: “Remember who YOU belong to.”
I belong.
I belong to...
To who? To my family? To my church? To my group of friends? To my place of employment? To my list of tasks waiting to be completed today? No...
I belong to Abba, the most loving, patient, joyful, and kind father, and He must’ve known this reminder from my five-year-old’s lips would take that reality deeper into my soul, in an experiential way. This is my prayer for you today, too. May you experience not only the reality that you belong, but that you belong to your Heavenly Father. You belong to him not because you earned it (you can’t) and not because you provide him with something he doesn’t already have (he’s fully satisfied in and of himself). He who formed you in your mother’s womb, calls you by name: “Laura!” “Isaiah!” “(fill in your own name)”. He sees you. He knows you. He loves you. “Remember who you belong to.”
I invite you to slowly utter these words from Ephesians 1 as a prayer to your Father in heaven and as you lift up your heart to him, may you be rooted and grounded more deeply in the love of God, the one to whom YOU BELONG.
“Even before you made the world, God, you loved ME and chose ME. You decided in advance to adopt me into your own family by bringing me to yourself through Jesus Christ. This is what you wanted to do, and it gave you great pleasure. So I praise you for the glorious grace you have poured out on me, the one who belongs to you. ...You identified me as your own by giving me the Holy Spirit, whom you promised long ago. Thank you.”
Laura Travis
Executive Team Administrator, Healing Care Ministries
Laura oversees day to day financial activities, human resources and communication with staff. She also provides customer support for many programs and events and loves helping people find the program or event that is right for them. Laura holds a MA in Math Education from Walden University. In addition to her role in administration you may also see her leading worship or serving as a Caregiver at events. Laura lives with her husband Josiah and their two children in Ashland, Ohio.
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