BADGES

God created us with seven needs:

(1)Dignity,

(2)Authority,

(3)Blessing & Provision,

(4)Safety & Security,

(5)Purpose & Meaning,

(6)Freedom & Boundary; and

(7) Love & Companionship

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Dignity 1. (Who are you) God Created Us with a Need for Dignity “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness,’ ...So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:26,27). The dignity of being made in the image of God elevates us above all other forms of life in creation. Human dignity encompasses our sense of honor, self-respect, and our personal distinctiveness. The loss of personal dignity prevents you from understanding who you really are as God’s handiwork. You fail to develop your own unique identity. Instead, many of your actions are controlled by what you perceive other people think of you or want from you. Self worth and respect are difficult to maintain in this type of captivity. • As you examine your inner person, can you discern any ongoing area in which your sense of dignity is being (or has been) violated, thus discoloring your sense of acceptance by your heavenly Father? Are you in the habit of violating the dignity of others? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Authority 2. God Created Us with a Need for Authority “And let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground” (Genesis 1:26). Understanding the role and purpose of authority can have dramatic effects in your life. Authority is the power of position. It is the biblical responsibility to include or exclude, to commend or correct. God tells us through His servant Paul in Romans 13:1,2 that it is He Who places all people in authority: “The authorities that exist have been established by God. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Blessing and Provision 3. God Created Us with a Need for Blessing and Provision “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’ Then God said, ‘I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food’“ (Genesis 1:28,29). God’s character is behind blessing and provision. His name, Jehovah Jireh — God the Provider — is key for you to understand the importance of trusting Him in this area. The God Who created the whole universe has the right to be trusted by His creation. In fact, He commands this! Paul writes, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances” (Philippians 4:11, emphasis added). __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Safety & Security 4. God Created Us with a Need for Security “Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. And the Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground — trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Genesis 2:8,9). Security may be defined as the condition in which you have confidence that you will experience protection and relational warmth. Relational security represents those people with whom you feel at peace, those whose affirmation helps you feel good about yourself. Thinking about them brings you joy. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Purpose and Meaning 5. God Created Us with a Need for Purpose and Meaning “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. ...Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name” (Genesis 2:15,19). God gave Adam work to do before the fall (yes, before the fall!) to endue him with purpose and meaning. The Hebrew word for work and worship is the same: avodah. Your true worship of God begins in experiencing joy in the work you do. Your joy reveals your gratefulness to God for the purpose and meaning you experience in your workplace and home. The culture of the United States has been heavily influenced by the philosophy of the ancient Greeks who considered pleasure and self-achievement to be mankind’s highest goal. Hellenism has produced the man-centered humanism which has invaded much of western Christianity. The Bible, however, represents the God-centered view of man’s highest goal. This is captured in Deuteronomy 6:5 and repeated by our Lord Jesus Christ: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30, emphasis added). Paul repeats the essence of the greatest of commandments so that your purpose and meaning in life might serve our Father’s will: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:23,24, emphasis added). Many today have lost the joy of God’s purpose and meaning for their lives. Consider the fruit of the Holy Spirit — love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control — as evidence that you have indeed discovered God’s purpose and meaning for you at this time in your life! __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Freedom and Boundary 6. God Created Us with a Need for Freedom and Boundary “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die’” (Genesis 2:16,17). A holy God loved Adam and Eve. He gave them freedom and boundary because He loved them. We are told, “My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in” (Proverbs 3:11,12; see also Hebrews 12:7-11). We in North America, including many Christians, have come to perceive any restraint on our personal freedom as something negative. Many who consider themselves “Christian” consider people to be basically good, and capable of making good choices according to the situation they encounter. But this view negates God’s purpose for giving us boundaries in His holy laws. The Bible presents the truth concerning the basic nature of man: “The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time” (Genesis 6:5, emphasis added). The Lord Jesus confirmed the nature of the inner man: “But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make man ‘unclean’. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man ‘unclean’” (Matthew 15:18-20, emphasis added). 14 Because the basic nature of man is to do evil, the Bible offers parents careful instruction in childraising: “Impress them [the commands of God] on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deuteronomy 6:7, emphasis added). “He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him” (Proverbs 13:24, emphasis added). “Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him” (Proverbs 22:15, emphasis added). You have been created with a need for the boundaries that God has established in His Word. Failure to be diligent in having His commandments instilled in your children may cause them to probe the arena of sin to seek fulfillment

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Love and Companionship 7. God Created Us to Experience Love and Companionship “The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him’” (Genesis 2:18). “For Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called “woman”, for she was taken out of man.’ For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame” (Genesis 2:20-25). “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love” (1 John 4:16-18). When you seek love “in all the wrong places,” Satan’s servants deceive you into rationalizing that you have a right to loving companionship outside of God’s will. Each failed relationship further diminishes your trust level, encompassing you with cynicism and hopelessness in other relationships. Failed relationships of all kinds result in calloused emotions. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________