When my three children were small, I would sit down by the side of their bed at night and just watch them sleep. I’d watch their chests rise and fall. Because I was their father, I got so much joy out of watching them sleep peacefully.

That’s the way your heavenly Father feels about you.

The Bible says, “Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, [God] had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love” (Ephesians 1:4 The Message). Before God even created the universe, he thought of you. In fact, the Bible says that the entire universe was created simply so God could create the human race and love us. We are the focus of his love, unlike anything else in creation.

You were created to be loved by God.

When you let that profound truth sink into your soul, you will never again have a problem with insecurity or low self-esteem. Because when you realize that God created you in order to love you, it will take away all those uncertain feelings.

In Hosea 6:6, God says, “I don’t want your sacrifices—I want your love; I don’t want your offerings—I want you to know me” (TLB). The most important thing you can know is that God created you to love you. And the most important thing you can do is to know and love him back. That’s your number one purpose in life.

The tragedy is that most people go through their entire life missing the purpose of it. They know all kinds of things—stock quotes, sports scores, who’s on the cover of their favorite magazine—but they don’t know God.

You may know about God, but do you know him personally? Do you have a friendship—a love relationship—with God? If not, I encourage you to take that step today.