Belonging

1 John 4:4, ‘But you belong to God my dear children.’

Berne Brown says, ‘You’re imperfect and you’re wired for struggle, but you are worthy of love and belonging.’

We all have the desire to belong, whether it is in a relationship, group, workplace or family. Relationships are an important ingredient for our wellbeing. We form our self image and worth from the relationships we experienced from childhood. This pivotal time reflects our worthiness and self image throughout the rest of our lives. If these relationships are not healthy it can be very difficult to reach our full potential.

Why do we need each other and desire to belong? I believe that God our Heavenly Father has made us this way. Being accepted and feeling a sense of belonging can turn depression into delight , anger into acceptance and hopelessness into hope.

The pursuit of belonging can be rocky. The only way you can truly find your tribe is when you are happy within, when you aren’t relying on others to make you happy and complete. You need to firmly put your trust and life in God’s hands. God says in Isaiah 43:1-2, ‘I have called you my name, you are mine.’ He doesn’t say you have to prove yourself, He says, ‘You are Mine.’

Make no mistake, you belong to God and through His Grace you are loved unconditionally. You will never have to worry about fitting in as you will alway belong to God. This gives you the freedom to be yourself.

Sometimes the search to belong can be fought with losing yourself, pain, rejection and defeat. It’s time to make a decision not to look in all the wrong places for approval and the need to belong. Choose healthy relationships, choose to, ‘Fix your eyes on Jesus.’ Hebrews 12:2. Release the chains that are preventing you from flying into the right arms. Only then will you truly belong.

Christine Bunn

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