The glory of being loved and known by God.

The Glory of Being Loved and Known by God

Posted on by Michele Morin

My finger hovered over the screen as I read and scrolled, the words landing like lead in my stomach. A friend had simply reported the facts:  “Try this!” she chirped, her heart pure, meaning only to encourage. “It worked for me! I’ve had 300 responses in just a few hours!”

I darkened the screen with a sniff and a tiny eye roll (just for good measure), because three-digit responses just don’t happen in my world. In fact, the math of social media leaves me with more questions than solutions, and the presiding symbol in the equation always feels like “less than.” When I fall into the trap of comparing myself to the gifted, the scintillating, and the accomplished, I can be sure that the spirit of scarcity won’t be far behind, sucking dry my confidence and leaving my faith parched and brittle.

“Less than” – the phrase clamors for my attention even through the darkened screen, but I will not give it entry to my soul. I will fight the lie with reassurance tucked into Paul’s letter to believers in Corinth. Whom we know, how much we know, or how well we are known by the-names-that-matter is all secondary to this one truth:

“But if anyone loves God, he is known by God.”  (I Corinthians 8:3 ESV)

Hear the Word of the Lord, O my soul!

I may not be “known” by thousands, but I am known by God, and this is the most compelling feature on my resume. God’s face is turned toward me with joy and welcome– with a love that is present and powerful. While I’m all the time imagining a closed door and cramped quarters, God has envisioned and provided for wide open access, and my feet are standing on the place of grace.

In his classic essay “The Weight of Glory,” C.S. Lewis describes this “good report with God” using one word:  “Glory!”  The promise of acceptance into the heart of God comes with His approval, and Lewis concludes:  “How God thinks of us is not only more important, but infinitely more important. (38) To please God . . . to be a real ingredient in the divine happiness . . . to be loved by God, not merely pitied, but delighted in as an artist delights in his work or a father in a son—it seems impossible, a weight or burden of glory which our thoughts can hardly sustain. But so it is.”  (39)

So it is. God’s ponderous glory is a weighty counterbalance to past lies or present disappointments. And when I try to do life according to any other equation, I’m making deposits to an account that is continually overdrawn.

Responding to the Weight of Glory

Because of weighty truth, I am no longer the girl who feared scarcity, inspired by a worried President Ford wearing his sweater on T.V. and telling us to turn down our thermostats because there most certainly was not enough oil to fuel our future.
God’s delight in me has filled up the empty spaces in my heart that corresponded to the empty spaces in my growing-up refrigerator—the ones that stood in stark contrast with the steady supply of vodka bottles hidden in the trunk of the ’72 Plymouth.

It’s likely your own road map shows a few desolate places in the itinerary up to this point, a record of the journey through days when security and abundance seemed to be a thousand miles away as you slogged through debt or disappointment or confusion. Whatever its origin, the only lasting corrective to a less-than mentality is an abundant approval that will endure. The only potent antidote to its poison is the weighty security of a welcome from the One with whom your heart is absolutely safe.

Therefore, with my longing to be acknowledged lavishly met, I receive (with gratitude!) the gift of self-forgetfulness. The script of my life can switch from, “Here I am!” to “There YOU are!” as I celebrate the accomplishments of my sisters in Christ and come alongside them to help them lean into their unique callings. Best of all, liberated from the need to be center stage, I can lift my eyes and be astounded by the glory of God where everything begins and ends.

Beholding His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth,

Michele Morin

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Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a teacher, blogger, reader, and gardener who finds joy in sitting at a table surrounded by women with open Bibles. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for nearly 30 years, and together they have four sons, two daughters-in-love, three grandchildren, and one lazy St. Bernard. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook or Twitter.

40 thoughts on “The Glory of Being Loved and Known by God”

  2. Michele, I absolutely love this comment: “I may not be “known” by thousands, but I am known by God, and this is the most compelling feature on my resume.” This is all that really matters, isn’t it? Thanks for reminding me of this great truth. ❤

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    1. Reminding readers and reminding myself.
      We’re caught on the cusp of being responsible stewards of our writing alongside the realization that His eyes are our true audience. Falling off the edge in the wrong direction is deadly.
      Cindy, thanks for all the many ways you encourage and bless.

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  3. Yes, and amen! You opened the secret! Whereas being well-known in the world is often a costly and confining compromise, being well-known to God allows for an unfettered freedom to be that the world cannot understand. Your God given talents and skills are well applied; your fame precedes your presence! 🙂

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  4. Hi Michele, I love this! What a beautiful reminder of who we are in God. How encouraging to think Our God says, ‘There You are’. Thank you. Susan

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    1. I spent some time this year reading and re-reading The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis, and that section jumped right off the page–not just because it explained the title of the book, but because it’s the answer to so many of our feelings of inadequacy and insecurity. Thank you, Susan, for reading.

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  8. Michele, another “Wow!” post! I will be thinking about this one for a long time. God fill in the empty spaces and abundantly so. We all have gone through times of scarcity, of both physical and spiritual needs. You are so right – true glory comes from being truly happy for the accomplishments of others and reducing our “self” so that there is room for Gods’ light to shine within.

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    1. I think the writing life (and any kind of creative pursuit) comes with a special challenge in this regard. On some level we know that we are more than the sum total of “our work,” but we often don’t act as if believe it.
      Thanks for this encouragement and for the “Wow.”

      Liked by 1 person

  12. “An abundant approval that will endure.” This is sweet comfort, Michele. “Slogging” through so much we would never choose has a way of making us feel unseen and unknown by God. C.S. Lewis logic reaches never fails to reach deep inside to remind me of the truth of God’s delight in me. And, on a different note, I’m so grateful to know you! Your writing resonates with me and my own inner thoughts. Merry Christmas, friend!

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    1. I find the same connection with yours, Crystal, and I also agree that C.S. Lewis has a way of saying things that always hits my heart and my head in just the right double barreled shot of Truth!

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  14. After I attended a writing conference last year, I started following the blogs of some of the speakers. Sadly, most writing blogs are more about increasing platform than bettering writing. And, some say that writers who don’t do all those things are considered lazy. But I just can’t see doing “all” the things. So I am seeking God’s wisdom on that front. But I am so glad we don’t need as “platform” to get God’s attention, that He knows and loves us whether anyone else does or not.

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    1. Yes, I also have grown weary of the “platform” talk, all the while knowing that if we ever hope to publish a book via traditional means, it’s “platform or perish.” But God knows all about the platforms and the stair steps and He’s in charge.
      I do hope to hit a writing conference in the future, but scheduling is so tight for me right now with homeschooling, etc.
      Again, God knows . . .

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  17. My entire life, I heard about and knew God, but the element that was missing that your post is a great reminder of is that my belief and comfort in knowing that he knew me as well. I knew that, but to believe it is another thing. Such comfort that could have been all these years and some misspent heartache could have been avoided. Wonderful post. You are indeed a great writer of inspiration to others, and thanks so much for your sharing so I can come be encouraged. I always enjoy reading, and I have learned some from you.
    ~scribbling hugs to you~ Peabea

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  19. It makes such a difference to keep our eyes on the fact that God knows us and loves us as we are and to do what we do for him rather than focusing on others’ responses. Thanks for this encouragement, Michele! Hope you have a lovely Christmas!

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