Have you ever been at a busy playground? Usually surrounding the playground is a ring of parents, grandparents, and babysitters chatting while they watch their kids run around. Once in a while a kid falls or gets his feelings hurt, and then whoever is closest runs to comfort him. The parent asks the child, “Where is your mom? Where is your dad? Who do you belong to?” The kid will sniffle and raise his hand, pointing at the person whose child he is. His parent usually rushes over and smothers the child with hugs, kissing the tears away.
“Who do you belong to? Whose child are you?” These questions can continue to haunt us into adulthood. Some people don’t know who they belong to. Maybe their parents were cruel or inattentive or absent. Maybe their parents died before their children could really know them – like my dad’s father died when my dad was ten years old. Regardless of who our earthly parents are, there is a Father who wants us as part of His family. John 1:12 says, “To all …who believed in his (Jesus’) name, he gave the right to become children of God.”
In receiving Christ, we become God’s children. God is a father who will rush over to us and hug us if we point to him and say we are His. This fatherly love redefines us and our identities. How everything would change if everyone accepted God as their father! What a joyful playground this world would be!
This is Andrew Palau.