It’s Five Minute Friday and I am joining Lisa-Jo Baker and other FMF girls to write flat out for five minutes. No editing, no polishing, and then linking up together. I am loving this challenge! I hope you enjoy it too! Check out what Five Minute Friday is all about here!
Since Lisa Jo is on vacation-the weekly link up is at Crystal Stine’s blog!
BELONG
GO…
When we are small, we claim everything as our own. The words for marking our territory are “It’s mine!”
I heard these words over and over when my sons were small – especially at ages 3 and 6! The mantra from one or the other son was always “It’s mine!” The sense of power that accompanied those two words ended in a puffed out chest when either son actually laid claim to the item in question.
When we are able to claim things as our own, a sense of ownership follows. With ownership comes power and with power comes belonging! Those with power whether in words or deeds always seemed to belong to the “in” group growing up.
But I challenge you to rethink your definition of “belonging” and instead I propose that power is not the answer – humility is the bottom line.
My favorite story in the Bible has always been Ruth. On some level, I relate to her sacrifice and willingness to follow her mother-in-law across country to honor her even after her husband had died. Ruth speaks these very words, “Where you go, I go; and where you live, I’ll live. Your people are my people, your God is my god; where you die, I’ll die, and that’s where I’ll be buried, so help me God—not even death itself is going to come between us!” (MSG)
Ruth walked in complete surrender and humbleness to do what she knew was best. Ruth followed her heart which in turn sought after God and knew what path she needed to take. Ruth belonged! Ruth had completely surrendered her own life for a life that honored God which meant she gave up her own life to serve her mother-in-law. Ruth humbled herself before God and all other naysayers and entered a new community in Moab. The final outcome was actual belonging in this new community.
This verse from Ruth 2 illustrates belonging. Ruth is speaking to Boaz as she says, “Oh sir, such grace, such kindness—I don’t deserve it. You’ve touched my heart, treated me like one of your own. And I don’t even belong here!” MSG  Ruth did belong because she followed the path that God laid on her heart to seek fully.
So I challenge each of us to seek after God with our whole hearts, release the power to Him and follow in a humbleness in all we do. This path will lead to belonging – to Christ and all He calls us to be.
Inhale the sweetness of these words from 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 as you pray for a sense of belonging today!
16-18 Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.
STOP
Blessings,
Mary
Linking with:
    
Thank you for the beautiful reminder that the path to belonging does not lie in the quest for ownership.
So many times we base who we are on other things or other people who we have spent time “acquiring” by not being true to ourselves. Ruth is a beautiful example of how we can be true to ourselves by sacrifice and being true to God. Thanks for stopping by! Happy Sunday!
So good!! Love the way you brought Ruth into the picture. I belong! Amen!
Blessed you stopped by! Ruth is such a perfect example of how we should live our lives. I couldn’t not include her in this post. Thank you for your kind words and I love that we are both part of this wonderful writing community.
I love how you used Ruth in the quest to understanding belonging. She is an amazingly beautiful example of courage and strength. She showed how knowing whom we belong to can change the outcome of our experiences. She lived a life of faith. Without knowing what would come of her commitment, she trusted and she stayed. Thank you for sharing Mary.
Ruth is such a role model for me and her surrender to God’s will followed by her deep faith is something I pray for. Blessed you stopped by and for the new friendship we are starting here in this wonderful writing world. Thank you for your guest post at Barbie’s and for doing the link up. It is such a place for encouragement each week. Blessings!
Oh the beauty of humility which brings about beautiful surrender and belonging.
Thanks, Barbie! I hope that your weekend trip is a time of renewing for your spirit. Blessed you stopped by!
Oh, I have those days here. My children are almost 2 and 3, and the word mine is clearly etched into the echos of my brain! lol 🙂
This too shall pass, as they say. Blessed you stopped by tonight!
Thank you for sharing this Mary!
Blessed you stopped by and that we are part of the same wonderful community of writers at #FMF.