I was in my small group last night and we were talking about how we know we are his people: assurance.
And I was saying man there are so many great beautiful, evocative, intimate passages where his love and faithfulness is made clear. His faithfulness and love to us is like this passage, intimate, intentional, exhaustive, and complete.
I am regularly encouraged by that stuff and it is part of how we walk in assurance.
Having said that, I think we, or at least I, need less encouragement and more fear and trembling, humble reverence, and faithful obediance. I say this because often I will question his promise of faithfulness saying "am I really saved?!" When what would be a better question is "God can you use me today? Draw me closer, pour me out for your glory and kingdom."
The difference in these approaches is in my view the difference between a good marriage and a bad one. A bad jealous husband asks his wife if she still loves him, while a good husband concentrates each day on loving his wife better and better than before, which typically in turn solicits her response.
Now we dont earn Gods love by works so that analogy isnt perfect but Im just saying what the great St. Augustine said:
"Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you."