How does God affirm me?
Genesis 1:27So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
God affirmed us when he created us like himself—in his own image.
Romans 5:8God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
1 Corinthians 15:3I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.
God values us so much that he was willing to send his Son to die for each of us so we could live forever with him, enjoying his love and care. He did this even while we were still stained with sin and had done nothing to deserve his forgiveness. God affirms our value, even if our lives are a mess.
Psalm 139:13-18You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. They cannot be numbered! I can’t even count them; they outnumber the grains of sand! And when I wake up, you are still with me!
God affirms by declaring through David that he created us “wonderfully complex” and “marvelous,” knew us before we were born, and is constantly thinking of us.
1 Samuel 16:7The Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Psalm 149:4The Lord delights in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.
Matthew 6:3-4“When you give to someone in need, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.”
Galatians 1:10Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.
Philippians 1:6I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
1 Peter 2:5You are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God.
God affirms our efforts to follow him, even efforts that don’t earn affirmation from people around us or efforts that don’t seem to be making a difference. God delights in hearts that truly strive to follow him far more than he delights in the impressiveness of the results.
1 Peter 2:9-10You are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. “Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.”
God affirms us by reminding us who we are in Christ.
Psalm 5:12You bless the godly, O Lord; you surround them with your shield of love.
Psalm 67:1May God be merciful and bless us. May his face smile with favor on us.
Isaiah 54:10For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain.
John 15:9I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.
1 Thessalonians 1:4We know, dear brothers and sisters, that God loves you and has chosen you to be his own people.
1 Peter 5:10In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.
2 Peter 1:2May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord.
God affirms us through his love, his blessings, his mercy, his forgiveness, and his gift of salvation. What greater affirmation can we receive than the affirmation of the Creator of the universe?
Jeremiah 31:3Long ago the Lord said . . . “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.”
Life is the story of how God pursues us, rescues us from our sin, and restores us so that we can become the people we were created to be. When we read God’s words to us throughout the Bible, we should think about all he has done to show us how much we matter to him.
