WORDS MATTER:
Do you know what your Father says about you?
As my daughter’s first birthday approached, I asked myself: what do I tell her most?
I love you.
I see you.
Be careful.
Through prayer and studying scripture, I found my words to be in line with those God speaks to His children. His “I love you” is on every page. His “I see you” is found in His presence with the Israelites, the person of Jesus, and the gift of His Holy Spirit. The difference? God doesn’t tell us to be careful. The essence of being in a relationship with Him is quite the opposite. Instead of “be careful,” He utters “be strong and courageous.” Many of us find ourselves making the same mistake, moving away from courage toward careful. Why do we do this?
Because we aren’t grounded in the depth of God’s love for us.
Because we haven’t allowed His presence to empower us.
Because we never learned how to be His child.
Combining story, Scripture, and theological insight, I Love You, I See You, Be Careful compels us to dig beneath the titles society has given us to rediscover and ground our identity first and foremost as children of God.