1 00:00:02,680 --> 00:00:13,240 Speaker 1: Life Audio. Welcome to the Crosswalk devotional. We're glad to 2 00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:16,759 Speaker 1: have you listening with us. Today's topic is about finding 3 00:00:16,920 --> 00:00:20,360 Speaker 1: belonging in Christ. We'll return with the devotional after a 4 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:36,320 Speaker 1: brief message from our sponsors. God's Heart for the Outcast, 5 00:00:36,479 --> 00:00:41,839 Speaker 1: written and read by Jennifer Slattery. The Lord builds up Jerusalem, 6 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:45,920 Speaker 1: he gathers the outcasts of Israel Psalm one for seven, 7 00:00:46,120 --> 00:00:51,479 Speaker 1: Verse two. I suspect most anyone who survived elementary and 8 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:55,920 Speaker 1: middle school resonate with today's verse. We've probably all found 9 00:00:55,960 --> 00:00:59,480 Speaker 1: ourselves on the outside of some social circle, wishing for 10 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:02,400 Speaker 1: a way in. When I was in fifth grade, I 11 00:01:02,680 --> 00:01:06,840 Speaker 1: somehow finagled a tentative connection with the in crowd, but 12 00:01:06,920 --> 00:01:09,640 Speaker 1: soon got pushed out. This was also the year my 13 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:13,880 Speaker 1: inability to care for my naturally curly hair earned me 14 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:18,039 Speaker 1: the nickname Fro, and I became the brunt of jokes 15 00:01:18,120 --> 00:01:22,040 Speaker 1: made by some of my male classmates. Feeling humiliated and alone, 16 00:01:22,080 --> 00:01:25,880 Speaker 1: I began spending my recesses inside. Have you ever been there? 17 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:31,360 Speaker 1: Such experiences prick at our needs for acceptance and belonging. 18 00:01:31,560 --> 00:01:34,440 Speaker 1: This is why these types of wounds can cut so deeply. 19 00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:37,880 Speaker 1: It hurts even more to fear we've been rejected by 20 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:41,360 Speaker 1: God himself. This was likely how the ancient Israelites living 21 00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:45,760 Speaker 1: during the Babylonian captivity felt, after centuries of rebellion, the 22 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:49,520 Speaker 1: Lord's persistent please that they returned to him His warnings 23 00:01:49,560 --> 00:01:54,200 Speaker 1: finally became reality. God honored his people's desire for autonomy, 24 00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:58,400 Speaker 1: lifted his protective hand, and allowed their enemies to invade 25 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:03,280 Speaker 1: their land. Although he assured them that his love remained 26 00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:09,519 Speaker 1: unconditionally and eternally, they felt abandoned and forsaken, rejected by 27 00:02:09,720 --> 00:02:12,880 Speaker 1: the one their souls needed most, and forced to live 28 00:02:13,040 --> 00:02:16,680 Speaker 1: as foreigners in a pagan land. But God hadn't forgotten 29 00:02:16,720 --> 00:02:19,840 Speaker 1: them through it all. He remained their faithful and attentive 30 00:02:19,919 --> 00:02:22,800 Speaker 1: defender and provider. He even blessed them in their new 31 00:02:22,880 --> 00:02:26,839 Speaker 1: land and encouraged them to enjoy their new lives in Babylon. Then, 32 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:30,359 Speaker 1: when it came time for their prophesied year of release, 33 00:02:30,760 --> 00:02:34,480 Speaker 1: he fulfilled his promise recorded in Deuteronomy thirty verses three 34 00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 1: to four, which reads, then the Lord your God will 35 00:02:37,520 --> 00:02:41,000 Speaker 1: restore your fortunes and have compassion on you, and gather 36 00:02:41,120 --> 00:02:43,880 Speaker 1: you again from all the nations where he scattered you, 37 00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:47,040 Speaker 1: even if you've been vanished to the most distant land 38 00:02:47,200 --> 00:02:50,480 Speaker 1: under the heavens, From there, the Lord your God will 39 00:02:50,520 --> 00:02:53,240 Speaker 1: gather you and bring you back. During the period of 40 00:02:53,280 --> 00:02:57,079 Speaker 1: Ezra and Nehemiah, he brought those who wanted to return 41 00:02:57,240 --> 00:03:01,320 Speaker 1: home and enabled them to rebuild their city, restore their temple, 42 00:03:01,400 --> 00:03:03,720 Speaker 1: the center of their worship, and their social life, the 43 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:08,160 Speaker 1: place in which they experienced a profound sense of belonging, 44 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:12,880 Speaker 1: intersecting life and faith. While most of us will never 45 00:03:12,919 --> 00:03:17,000 Speaker 1: find ourselves physically exiled, we've likely felt that way socially 46 00:03:17,040 --> 00:03:20,000 Speaker 1: and will again in those instances. May we draw comfort 47 00:03:20,040 --> 00:03:23,840 Speaker 1: from today's Verse and what it reveals regarding our father's heart. 48 00:03:24,240 --> 00:03:27,280 Speaker 1: He sees every wound or injustice we suffer, and the 49 00:03:27,320 --> 00:03:33,320 Speaker 1: insecurity rejection often exasperates. But he doesn't just witness our pain, 50 00:03:33,720 --> 00:03:37,280 Speaker 1: he does something about it in his perfect timing. Perhaps 51 00:03:37,320 --> 00:03:40,560 Speaker 1: he'll use an unexpected greeting card, phone call, or text 52 00:03:40,600 --> 00:03:43,520 Speaker 1: from a friend or family member to remind you of 53 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:46,560 Speaker 1: your inherent value, or will nudge someone in your faith 54 00:03:46,600 --> 00:03:49,760 Speaker 1: community to sit with you in your sorrow so that 55 00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:52,840 Speaker 1: you feel less alone. Maybe he'll encourage you through a 56 00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:55,800 Speaker 1: devotion you read online, podcast episode you listen to a 57 00:03:55,880 --> 00:03:58,760 Speaker 1: song on the radio, or a truth packed sermon from 58 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:02,760 Speaker 1: your pastor, or maybe he'll make his presence tangible as 59 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:06,880 Speaker 1: he encases you in his love. Regardless of how he 60 00:04:06,920 --> 00:04:10,200 Speaker 1: addresses your heartache, you can be sure of this. He 61 00:04:10,600 --> 00:04:15,360 Speaker 1: excels at bringing his outcasts into environments that feel like home. 62 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:19,680 Speaker 1: If he can move a pagan Persian ruler named Cyrus 63 00:04:19,720 --> 00:04:23,120 Speaker 1: to send his Jewish subjects back to Jerusalem with abundant 64 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:26,360 Speaker 1: provisions and enable them to repair the city's walls, the 65 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:30,520 Speaker 1: destroyed temple and homes, he can alleviate your pain and 66 00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:35,239 Speaker 1: bring you figuratively home as well. He restored what likely 67 00:04:35,279 --> 00:04:39,920 Speaker 1: felt irreparable, because nothing is impossible for him more than 68 00:04:40,000 --> 00:04:43,679 Speaker 1: that in Christ, we always belong through faith. Our father 69 00:04:43,720 --> 00:04:47,320 Speaker 1: felt pleased to adopt us as his beloved children and 70 00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:51,440 Speaker 1: placed us irrevocably in his global family, forever bound by 71 00:04:51,480 --> 00:04:54,880 Speaker 1: the blood of his son. I understand this present reality 72 00:04:54,960 --> 00:04:58,719 Speaker 1: doesn't eradicate the pain we experience when others treat us poorly, 73 00:04:58,800 --> 00:05:02,560 Speaker 1: but it does assure that were never truly alone, nor 74 00:05:02,640 --> 00:05:06,960 Speaker 1: are we destined for isolation. We'll spend our eternity with 75 00:05:07,120 --> 00:05:11,120 Speaker 1: Him and the rest of his followers. Fully and forever accepted. 76 00:05:11,600 --> 00:05:15,080 Speaker 1: As we wait for that glorious existence, we can trust 77 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:17,360 Speaker 1: Him to lead us to people who will accept us 78 00:05:17,560 --> 00:05:20,400 Speaker 1: as we are and help us heal from the wounds 79 00:05:20,400 --> 00:05:28,800 Speaker 1: we experience in our sin ravish broken world. The Crosswalk 80 00:05:28,839 --> 00:05:32,279 Speaker 1: Devotional is a production of Life Audio and Salem Media. 81 00:05:33,279 --> 00:05:35,640 Speaker 1: If you liked what you heard today, please take a 82 00:05:35,680 --> 00:05:38,440 Speaker 1: second to rate and review this podcast in your favorite 83 00:05:38,480 --> 00:05:42,000 Speaker 1: podcast app so that more listeners like you can find 84 00:05:42,040 --> 00:05:47,479 Speaker 1: the show. For more faith filled inspirational podcasts, visit us 85 00:05:47,520 --> 00:05:56,520 Speaker 1: at lifeaudio dot com.