Ever since I was little, I have known that when you hear the jangle of keys on a nametag it meant that my mom or one of the other church staff was near. The sound is very distinctive and hard to miss. I learned to listen for it when I was trying to find my mom, or at least someone who could tell me where my mom was.
As I grew older, I started to identify more things that the jangle of those keys on the nametag meant. If you had those keys on your nametag, it meant you had authority. So whenever you are entrusted with those keys, it means you have authority. Those keys and nametag mean that you can open any door in the church. When I borrowed them, they marked me as the daughter of the Children’s Ministry Director. The jangle of the keys made me feel important. Because of what they symbolized.
When I got old enough to volunteer myself, I got my own nametag. It didn’t have keys on it, but it meant I was a volunteer, in charge of something. It had my own name on it. And my last name could still prove that my mom is the Children’s Ministry Director.
On Ash Wednesday, the ash cross on our foreheads gave me pretty much the same feeling.
2 Corinthians 1:21-22 says, “Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” (Emphasis mine.)
My very favorite verse of all time is John 3:1. It says, “See what great love the Father has lavished on us that we might be called Children of God. And that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it does not know him.” (Emphasis and underline mine.)
I love this verse because of the imagery that comes with it. Because of the grace of our Loving Creator, we can find our identity in Him, as His Children. And his seal on us is the ‘nametag’ that shows everyone who we are.
It is a beautiful thing to be called a Child of God.
“To call God “Father” is simply to live in the space which Jesus created. To move from residing far from God as his enemy; or on the other side of town from his as a stranger; or down the street as an acquaintance; or in an adjoining house as a servant; and to move into our own bedroom as a child in his family.”
– Chad Bird, a Christian author and speaker.
Psalm 91:1-2 says:
Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
Because of the Loving Goodness of the Father, we can know that we are safe and secure in the rest that he gives.
Colossians 1:13-14 says:
For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Because of Him, we are released from the Domain of Darkness and brought into the Kingdom of Light as Beloved Children of the King.
And that is who we are.
2 responses to “Child of God”
This was really good! I thought that the symbolism of the keys and how they made you feel and how God sets His seal upon us was really cool. Excited to read your next post!
Thanks!