Notes on Hope Devotional

Lavishly Loved

I John 3:1 (NIV)
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” 

My pastor has been doing a series on identity for the past few months. Our identity shapes our reality. This verse is a declaration of our identity, how we are loved, and what we are called.

I love the way this is written. In light of good punctuation, there is an exclamation point intended for us to raise our voices at the end. I don’t think we get the full effect by silently reading it. We need to say it out loud, repeat it, see it on a neon sign in our brain, and believe it.

In order for our brains to take in new information; a new pathway has to be created. This is especially true when there are negative patterns of thinking. We now have the opportunity to trail blaze and create new pathways. It requires all our senses. Visually, we need to see a picture of what being called “children of God” looks like.  

Living in a military town, I love to see the news when a Navy ship that has been deployed returns to San Diego after being gone for eight months. Families are reunited, and parents get to see their children, some for the first time. It never fails that the reporter and cameraman focus on one young family where the kids run up to meet Dad and throw their arms around him. Squeals, screams, and smiles with hugs, kisses, and tears are expressions of emotions that demonstrate being loved which we can see with our own eyes and allow to settle in our hearts to actually feel it.

Hearing something over and over again is another way to create a new pathway in our brain. Listening to a trash truck picking up trash and listening to Handel’s Messiah affects our brains differently. The same is true with words. When the words “I love you” are spoken aloud and frequently to children, they feel secure. When children are given negative and cruel messages, they feel insecure and unloved.

The research is clear that reading and talking to children from birth begins the firing of the neurons that help develop language and speech. They respond to what they hear. It doesn’t appear to be much different for us as adults. We need to hear that we are loved by God. Out loud and often.

We sing a worship song at church that has a chorus of, “Oh, how He loves me and you.” Could that really help our brains take that information and make it a reality? I think so. Letting yourself hear the words from God’s Word daily and out loud for your brain to hear isn’t a bad idea.

I John 3:1 is a good place to start the daily practice of repeating the verse out loud. A daily declaration of defining ourselves by our Abba Father: His beloved, dear, and lavishly loved children. And that is what we are!

Dear Abba Father,
Thank you for loving us in such a way that we are called your children! Clear our minds so we can fully receive it, believe it, and live it out as our reality. We are loved lavishly by You. Let it soak, simmer, and sink in our brains. We can’t thank You enough.
In Jesus Name,
Amen