Monday March 11

Matthew 3:13-17

Becky Lund

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”

As a teacher, part of my job is giving feedback to my students.  The “rule” given to me for doing this was to make a sandwich – a positive comment, an area for improvement, and another positive comment.  This is harder than it sounds because there are times when I want to list numerous things a student needs to fix. Other times, I think that nothing went well enough to compliment.  I’ve found similar problems in other parts of my life when I find myself making a list of complaints against others or myself with nothing good to add.

This is why God’s words in verse 17 are so important to me. While God was speaking of His Son, through Jesus those words apply to us as well.  We are all God’s children. God loves each one of us. And because we are baptized in Christ, God is well-pleased with us too.  Not just two positive moments sandwiching a lifetime of failure and sin, but a promise to people who have been washed to be whiter than snow through Christ.  God’s feedback is purely positive because He loves us so unconditionally.

Questions for reflection:

• What is one way you will give purely positive feedback to others and yourself?

• How will you remember that you are a child of God and one with whom God is well-pleased?

Prayer:

Heavenly Father, Thank you for claiming me as Your child, for loving me, and for being well-pleased with me.  Amen.