Blaise Pascal once said the now-famous words: “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which [can] be filled . . . only be filled by God.” St. Augustine once prayed, “Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in You.” In Revelation 21 we see the end of human longing—the heart at rest in relationship with its Creator in His eternal kingdom.
Something we spend less time thinking about, however, is the longing that God has—a longing that will also be fulfilled on that great day. Now, to be sure, an omnipotent, self-sufficient God doesn’t lack anything. We don’t meet God’s needs. But throughout biblical history, God has expressed His longing for us: “You will be Mine.”
• “I will claim you as My own people, and I will be your God” (Exodus 6:7).
• “I will be your God, and you will be My people” (Leviticus 26:12).
• “I will put My instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be My people” (Jeremiah 31:33).
• “You will live in Israel, the land I gave your ancestors long ago. You will be My people, and I will be your God” (Ezekiel 36:28).
For thousands of years, God has had one desire—a people drawn to Himself. This longing has fueled His missionary endeavors: sending prophets to call back His straying people, sending His Son to find His straying sheep (Luke 19:10). In the kingdom of God, His desire will finally be fulfilled: “I will be their God, and they will be My children” (Revelation 21:7).
God is our King and Judge, that’s true. But we often miss His Father heart—a heart that longs for our free, loving, devoted allegiance to Him; a heart that awaits that longing to be fulfilled.
More:
• 2 Samuel 7:23
• Matthew 18:12-14
• Luke 15:22-24
Next:
How do you view God? The “You will be My people” statements are often in the context of God’s disobedient people repenting. How can this encourage you when you repent of your sin?
Marylin L. Byars on May 17, 2010 at 7:06 am
God Bless everyone involve with this site. I will continue to do my morning devotion from this site I really like the setup of this site. Today is my first time trying my morning devotion online it was really exciting. You know Jesus said that He will come back, but first God Word must go out and reach the people in these days the internet is one great way to get God Word out to the people. Please keep up the very great work of the Lord our Father. Thank you for being one of the online site to get God Word out to the people. Once again God Bless everyone.
Much Love,
Marylin L. Byars
hello on May 17, 2010 at 9:04 am
This is really a good devotion and true for all christians.It encourage me to continue tor have faith in God, peace from God….as God claim that we are His children and He is our God.Amen.
maryanneb47 on May 17, 2010 at 5:13 pm
Welcome Marylin I’ve only been on this site for about a week and I’m glad I stumbled upon it. I’ve been a member of RBC ministries for a couple of years now and I found this site when I thought I clicked on Strength for the Journey. I’m glad that I’ve been found and learn daily from God’s word. I do alot of devotions and prayer and talk to God and also now I can listen to Hymns while I play games. Thank You RBC ministries.
Cazador on May 17, 2010 at 11:55 pm
Someone once said: “It’s not about you..”. How true. Life is not about getting what I want out of it, achieving my goals and ambitions, or fulfilling my dreams. Makes me think of all that time, energy and passion I had spent chasing after meaningless trophies, to try impress strangers and people who weren’t even important to me. I’ve come to realize that only God gives real meaning and significance to my life. I have a “hole” in my heart and He’s the only one who can fill that.
fd on May 18, 2010 at 9:45 am
I am very glad coming across this site. Before I used to simply read my daily bread and that was all. The discovery of this site comes at the right time as I feel so downcast and I find peace, relief and comfort from your words and comments. Thank you everyone for sharing thoughts, that’s really uplipfting.