Free Seeing Yourself Through God's Eyes by June Hunt Page A

62:5-6).

    B ack in the days when courageous explorers traveled the oceans in sailing ships, they paid a lot of money for maps accurately depicting the geography of the known world. It was of utmost importance to know precisely where they were at all times. This wasn’t just a matter of navigating successfully to their destination. They believed a mariner who lost sight of familiar landmarks risked wandering off the edges of the map, into unknown waters teeming with terrifying sea monsters. If they strayed too far, whole ships and entire crews could fall off the rim of the world, never to be seen again.
    Of course, today we are amused by such backward thinking and unfounded fears. Cartographers (mapmakers) have mapped the whole globe and know better.
    Yet many of us, as believers, are very much like those superstitious sailors. Without knowing our precise position within God’s kingdom, we mistakenly believe there might be unknown regions where His grace no longer applies to us or treacherous currents that might plunge us into peril. Under these conditions, fear keeps us from trusting the One who would lead us away from the shores of our old existence toward a new life of freedom and grace.
    Knowing who you are “in Christ” begins by learning where you stand.
    Here’s the truth of the matter: As one who has cried out to God for salvation, you are always sheltered under His protective sovereignty. You are never beyond His tender love and saving grace. There are no edges to the territory of His kingdom. To be a believer is to forever occupy a position of forgiveness and favor with your Creator—the God of all there is—no matter where you are.
    There is no safer place than that.
    Day 1: I A M A DOPTED BY G OD

    • Regardless of your family ties, you can draw comfort from knowing you have been adopted into God’s family. What are some of the similarities and differences between the legal adoption of a child into a family and the spiritual adoption of a person into God’s family?

    • Read Galatians 4:5-7 out loud. What benefits and blessings do believers receive when adopted into God’s family?

    Day 2: I A M A C HILD OF G OD

    • Every person has an inward “longing to belong.” God Himself put this feeling into our hearts. Why do you think God put this longing in us? How does this longing reveal itself in your life?
     
    • According to John 1:12, how does a person become a true child of God?

    Day 3: I A M P RECIOUS TO G OD

    • When we face difficulties in life, we might be tempted to doubt that we are truly precious to God. Read Isaiah 43:4 out loud. What three words does the prophet use to describe God’s feelings toward His people?

    • Most of us find it hard to reconcile these two truths: 1) I am precious to God, yet 2) He allows hardship and pain. In such times, you can cling to the words of Isaiah: “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze” (43:2). What is your “personalized version” of this verse (see page 32 in this book)?

    Day 4: I A M A CCEPTED BY G OD

    • While many of us have experienced rejection and some of us have been scorned by someone who should have loved us, the Word of God says we are totally and completely accepted by our heavenly Father (Ephesians 1:3-10). What does Psalm 27:10 teach us about this kind of acceptance? What does Jeremiah 31:3 say to you personally?
     
    • Are there times you struggle with feeling accepted by God? What causes those doubts? What can you do to be assured of His acceptance?

    Day 5: I A M C ALLED BY N AME BY G OD

    • Read the following quote by Charles Haddon Spurgeon: “He who counts the stars, and calls them by their names, is in no danger of forgetting His own children. He knows you as thoroughly as if you were the only creature He ever made, or the only saint He ever