Devotions from Stephen Smith’s book, Soul Custody

“We are not here to simply exist. We are here to become.” Susan Howatch. What we are to become is our true selves-the exact people God intended for us to become.  Knowing our true selves helps us to know who God really is.  Thomas Merton said, “If I find Him I will find myself and if I find my true self I will find Him!”  Life is all about knowing God, which leads to knowing our true selves. Sometimes we might discover we don’t really want to know all about ourselves as we find we are selfish, prideful, jealous, angry etc. But we need to deal with these things if are on the road to transformation and knowing who we really are.  How wonderful then to hear His voice telling us it’s not about our achievements etc but our belovedness depends on the fact that God says we are loveable, worthy of His love and attention and care. Caring for our souls means honoring our true identity and guarding and valuing it.  Otherwise we remain a fraction of who God has in mind . “ By accepting ourselves, we learn to accept a God who is loving, gracious, creative, able to forgive, and willing to extend mercy”  As we go about our day let us remember that we matter to God!