Belonging and acceptance

Acceptance and Belonging.   We ALL want, desire,  and long for both of them.   ACCEPT- receive gladly; take willingly; Receive as adequate or satisfactory; admit to a group or place; be favorably disposed to. ACCEPTANCE-  the state of being accepted. Favorable reception; approval   BELONG- to be the property or concern of; To be part of or in natural association with something; To have a proper and suitable place; BELONGING- close and secure relationship   People go to extreme lengths in search of acceptance and belonging. Hear what God has to say:     " Every living soul BELONGS to me,' declares the LORD." Ezekiel 18:4   "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you BELONGED to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you DO NOT BELONG to the world, but I have CHOSEN YOU out of the world." John 15:18 & 19   "And you also are among those who are called to BELONG TO JESUS CHRIST." Romans 1:6   "If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So whether we live or die, we BELONG to the Lord." Romans 14:8   "But you, sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all sons /daughters of the light and of the day. We do not belong to the night or darkness. so then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. .....Since we BELONG TO THE DAY , let us be self- controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. ...He died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live together with him. " 1 Thessalonians 5:4-10   "He who BELONGS to God hears what God says. The reason you don't hear is that you don't BELONG to God." John 8:47     "Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member BELONGS to all the others." Romans 12:5     We belong to God. We belong to Jesus. We belong to the Day. We belong to each other.   "ACCEPT one another, then, just as Christ ACCEPTED you, in order to bring praise to God." Romans 15:7   " ACCEPT him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. One mans' faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God HAS ACCEPTED HIM. Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands and falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand." Romans 14:1-4   You do belong. You are accepted. You belong and are accepted by the One who matters most. Don't go looking for your belonging and acceptance in anyone or anything else besides the One you were made for. They will leave you feeling empty. BELIEVE GOD. Let this truth sink DEEPLY in your soul..       Blessings from Bombadil. Kristy Link   "I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your joy in Christ Jesus will overflow on account of me." Phillipians 1:25 & 26