You are the Beloved.

The truth of your life is that God our Father sees you as a precious one. He welcomes you to exist. God celebrates your existence. Know that you are infinitely loved. There is no burden on you to prove you are worthy of being loved, of being heard, of being respected, honored, and given dignity. Your life is an unceasing “yes” to the truth that you are beloved because of God’s great love. In him you deserve to be valued. On you his favor rests.

Your spirit connection with your Father matters. True legitimacy comes from the One who chose you with everlasting love. Hear the kind voice of your Father speaking to you in the core of your essence, “You are my beloved. You are accepted in my Beloved Son” (Eph. 1:6 NKJV). You are chosen. I called you by name from the very beginning. You belong to me, and I know you as my own, and I am yours. I carved you in the palms of my Son. I hold you in my embrace. You have my infinite tenderness, and I care for you intimately. I have counted every hair on your head, and wherever you go, I go with you. Wherever you are, I am. Wherever you rest, I keep watch. I will never hide my face from you. Nothing will ever separate us. Live your life as my redeemed beloved. You can find true inner freedom ever more fully.”

Say “Yes” to your belovedness, your significance, your worth, and your belonging. His “Yes” is engraved on your heart. Rise up in Christ to your full stature and discover how to fulfill your deepest essence of who you are, beloved in God your Father and kept in his Son by his Holy Spirit. The Father’s Business

You Are the Beloved: Daily Meditations for Spiritual Living by Henri J.M. Nouwen is a wonderful addition to my devotional library.

The defining moment in Jesus’ public ministry was when He was baptized in the Jordan and heard the public affirmation, “You are my beloved Son, on whom my favor rests.” Henri Nouwen believed Jesus’ “whole life was continually claiming that identity in the midst of everything.”

The book is divided into months January to December with a reading passage for every day. This collection of 365 meditations by a Catholic priest offers simple daily devotions for everyone. It focuses on our identity as the beloved of God.  Some of the writings have never been published!

The kindness and gentleness of Henri J.M. Nouwen is refreshing and helpful for dark times and encouraging for all time. The brief daily readings are profound and moving. They are thought-provoking and convicting in such a simple way, without harshness.

I jumped right in when I received the book last month, and have been reading it daily. It is a great way to start the day with peace. I expect to discover new insights in each daily reading over the years.

Important Themes:

• You are not what you do.
• You are not what you have.
• You are not what people say you are.
• You are beloved sons and daughters of God.

One of my favorites:

“When we love God with all our heart, mind, strength, and soul, we cannot do other than love our neighbor, and our very selves.”

About Henri J.M. Nouwen:

Henri Nouwen was born in Holland in 1932 and ordained a Catholic priest in 1957. He obtained his doctorandus in psychology from Nijmegen University in The Netherlands and taught at Notre Dame, Yale, and Harvard. He experienced the monastic life with Trappist monks at the Abbey of the Genesee, lived among the poor in Latin America with the Maryknoll missioners, and was interested and active in numerous causes related to social justice. After a lifetime of seeking, Henri Nouwen finally found his home in Canada, as pastor of L’Arche Daybreak – where people with intellectual disabilities and their caregivers live together in community.

Henri Nouwen wrote over 40 books on spirituality and the spiritual life that have sold millions of copies and been translated into dozens of languages. His vision of spirituality was broad and inclusive, and his compassion embraced all of humankind. He died in 1996. His work and his spirit live on. Henri Nouwen pronounced his name “Henry Now-en.” For more information on his life and work, please visit www.henrinouwen.org.

About Gabrielle Earnshaw:

Gabrielle Earnshaw is the founding archivist of the Henri J M. Nouwen Archives and Research Collection in Toronto, Canada. She has been the adviser to the Henri Nouwen Legacy Trust for sixteen years and is consulted throughout the world on Nouwen and his literary legacy. The coeditor of Turning the Wheel: Henri Nouwen and Our Search for God and editor of Love, Henri: Letters on the Spiritual Life, she compiled and edited the recently published book, You Are the Beloved: Daily Meditations for Spiritual Living, a collection of 365 insights by Henri Nouwen, the Catholic priest, professor and pastor who gained international renown as the author of 39 books. Nouwen’s books have sold upward of seven million copies worldwide, resonating with people across the religious, spiritual, cultural, and political spectrum.

You are the Beloved by Henri Nouwen would make a great present for any occasion and recipient!

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.