'For I am yours... and you are mine' (see Isaiah 43:1). Yes, it may seem a bit like a greeting-card clich. We may know in our heads that we belong to Jesus, but knowing in our hearts that we belong to him can be harder to accept. What does 'belonging to Jesus' mean, anyway? What difference does it make to how our lives look?

The real sense of value that comes from knowing we're children of God doesn't come from the nice things he gives us, or in fact any 'thing' that can disappear at any time. God's declaration that we are his, and that we are significant because of this, isn't him saying, 'I shall give you, my child, anything you want to do or desire.' God's acceptance is a lasting significance that won't be outdated in six months: 'I have called you by name; now you belong to me. When you cross deep rivers, I will be with you, and you won't drown. When you walk through fire, you won't be burned...I am the Lord, your God...To me, you are very dear, and I love you' (Isaiah 43:1-4 CEV).

We are precious. Not for what we have, or for what we've done - just for us. When our sense of significance is based on an inside job through Jesus, rather than on external things, nothing can touch it.

So what now? You are significant because you belong to God. Tell yourself this regularly, maybe even write it somewhere to serve as a reminder. Allow nothing or no one to convince you of anything else.

We all have people we know through various circles - work, church, sports, etc. And many of us have 'friends' and 'followers' on social media. But how many of them would we class as close friends: to share our intimate lives with and ask for help? We all need close friends. We're not supposed to live life on our own; we need the help of others, and they need our help too.

In the perfect world of the Garden of Eden, Adam still couldn't make it by himself, so God said, 'I will make a helper suitable for him' (Genesis 2:18 NIV). It's not about being the most popular; it's about how deep our friendships are. We need friends we can trust and be vulnerable with. The Bible says: 'Some friends don't help, but a true friend is closer than your own family' (Proverbs 18:24 NIV).

When we're going through tough times, it's so helpful to have a close friend facing things alongside us. And it can be even more helpful if that friend has experienced and overcome the things we're going through. And then when we've come out the other side of our troubles, we can be that friend to someone else.

So what now? How can you be a good and loyal friend to others? The Bible asks you to clothe yourself with 'compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience' (Colossians 3:12 NIV). Ask God to help you find close friends and learn how to be a true friend.

We need friends. But more than that, we really need godly friends. These are the friends who help us grow our faith and lead us closer to God. All of us need at least one friend like this. Life is tough and we need people there to encourage, support and walk with us.

Godly friends are the friends who are there for us through 'all kinds of weather'. Whatever we're going through, good or bad, we can rely on them to go through it with us. But they're also the kind of friends who'll tell us when we're doing things that are taking us out of God's presence, or leading us further away from the life we're called to. They're the ones who'll be 'speaking the truth in love' so 'we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ' (Ephesians 4:15 NIV). Godly friends help us by being there, praying on our behalf, listening, guiding, sharing and sacrificing.

Not only do we need to have godly friends around us, but we also need to work on becoming a godly friend. Any kind of good relationship with another person needs commitment and sacrifice on both sides. So we need to be a godly friend back.

So what now? The best way to grow at being a godly friend is to grow your friendship with Jesus. The closer you get to him, the stronger, more transparent and sweeter your earthly friendships will be.

Moses had a massive assignment: liberating two million people from the grip of slavery: leading them through a wilderness where they were exposed to enemies and extreme weather elements; feeding and clothing them, settling disputes, and keeping them moving towards their destination. This is what Moses prayed: 'If your presence does not go with us, do not bring us' (Exodus 33:15 NKJV). Moses preferred to go nowhere with God than anywhere without him. When David's affair with Bathsheba was exposed, he didn't pray, 'Don't take my crown from me, or my kingdom, or my army.' No, he knew what mattered most: 'Do not take your Holy Spirit from me' (Psalm 51:11 NKJV).

To grow spiritually, we must develop an increasing awareness of God's presence in our lives. How do we do that? Instead of being a rock, become a sponge. When we place a rock in water, its surface gets wet but its core remains hard and dry. But when we place a sponge in water, the water permeates its whole being.

When we sense God's presence and know he's with us, we can handle whatever life brings

So what now? Slow down and invite God's presence in. Begin by reading this Scripture, maybe write it down, and repeat it to yourself. Open every pore of your soul to God's presence: 'The Lord your God is with you; the mighty one will save you. He will rejoice over you. You will rest in his love; he will sing and be joyful about you' (Zephaniah 3:17 NCV).

Failing to 'unlearn' keeps us from becoming who God wants us to be. The man in John 5 is a great example of this. He had been disabled for thirty-eight years when Jesus asked if he would like to get well. The man had 'learned' there was only one way to be healed: 'I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up' (John 5:7 NKJV). This man assumed something that may have cost him thirty-eight years! He thought that to be healed, he had to be the first person into the pool of Bethesda when an angel stirred the water. He had 'learned' a belief that kept him imprisoned.

But Jesus refuted that inaccurate belief with one sentence: 'Take up your bed and walk' (John 5:11 NKJV). Jesus set this man free, physically and cognitively. Faith is unlearning the senseless worries and misguided beliefs that keep us captive. And that's what we do when we act on Scripture. We literally upgrade our minds by a download of the mind of Jesus (see 1 Corinthians 2:16).

Unlearning something is twice as hard as learning it. Why? Because generally we have to double back to get to where we need to be. Getting old thoughts out of our mind is harder than getting new thoughts into it. But it's worth it.

So what now? Renew your mind with God's word. When you unlearn the unhelpful beliefs and habits you've learned over time, you'll find you are set free in so many other ways.

The essence of leadership lies in doing two things. (1) Going first! 'Cross over ahead of your fellow Israelites' (Joshua 1:14 NIV). This means that if God has called us to lead, we step out in faith and go first. This requires believing in ourselves and our mission. God told Joshua, 'Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go' (Joshua 1:9 NIV). We don't need all the answers upfront. Our confidence comes from knowing that God is with us - and ahead of us.

(2) Taking others with us. 'Cross...ahead of your brothers to help them' (Joshua 1:14 NCV). We may wonder, 'How long do I have to keep helping and investing in this person?' The answer is, 'until they take the land the Lord their God is giving them' (Joshua 1:15 NCV). Some people will serve when they're made to; others serve in a crisis. But servant-hearted people initiate service. They see the need, seize the opportunity and serve, knowing they're serving God. Therefore it's great to serve with gladness (see Psalm 100:2).

So what now? True leadership means going first and taking others with you. And the reward: God said, 'After that, you may go back and occupy your own land, which...the Lord gave you' (Joshua 1:15 NIV).