finished product

So There’s That

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It’s Thursday. And I’m having one of those days where I’m not feeling particularly creative. It happens to the best of us writers. And even me.

Let me ask you something. Do you ever find yourself talking and you hear the words coming out of your mouth and think, “I sound like the world’s biggest phony”?

For some reason, that happens when I’m talking about spiritual things. In the back of my mind, I’m thinking, “If they only knew some of the other things I think about.”

I’m thankful that that’s not how God sees me. He looks at me and sees Jesus. He looks at me and sees me as I’ll look when I look like Jesus. He can see past all my present mess to the finished product that I can’t even begin to see yet.

Even on those days when I feel like the biggest fraud of all and like I could take on the Apostle Paul for the title of World’s Worst Sinner, God still loves me as much as those days when I feel like I’m super-spiritual and have my theological t’s crossed and i’s dotted.

That’s something that will never get old for me. Well, two things. The love of God that never gives up and the grace of God that never fails to surprise me. Even after over 1,500 of these posts.

I’m also thankful that Jesus loves me the way He found me but refuses to leave me that way.

I’m also thankful for all those people who have been Jesus’ hands and feet to me through all these years.

And I’m thankful for my 14-year old cat who remains the laziest animal I have ever seen who actually has a pulse. Just don’t you dare tell her she’s not human.

So there’s that.

 

 

 

#notugly

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“For it’s by God’s grace that you have been saved. You receive it through faith. It was not our plan or our effort. It is God’s gift, pure and simple. You didn’t earn it, not one of us did, so don’t go around bragging that you must have done something amazing. For we are the product of His hand, heaven’s poetry etched on lives, created in the Anointed, Jesus, to accomplish the good works God arranged long ago” (Ephesians 2:8-10).

Maybe you don’t like the way you look.

Maybe you have a hard time looking at yourself in the mirror or watching yourself in videos or pictures.

Maybe you’ve felt like no one with eyes could ever be attracted to you.

Maybe you’ve thought to yourself, ” If only I could just lose 20 pounds” “If only I had a different face” “If only I were taller”. . . the list goes on.

Can I share something with you?

God loves you just the way you are. He looks at you and says, “Very good.”

In the above mentioned verses, the Apostle Paul says that we are God’s poiema, His workmanship, His finished product, His masterpiece. I really like how The Voice puts it– “heaven’s poetry etched on lives.”

You are not ugly. You are beautiful because God says so. He looks at you and delights in what He sees. And as the old saying goes, God don’t make no junk.

Remember that the next time you don’t like your own reflection. Remember that you are an image-bearer of God, reflecting a part of God that people will only see when they see you.

You may not be a 10 in the world’s eyes, but never forget that to Jesus, you’re to die for.

Back to Loving Being Me

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It really is okay to love yourself. After all, the Bible does say to love your neighbor as yourself and you can’t very well do that if you’re not too fond of you. I think there’s a kind of false modesty that gets passed around where we have the “aw shucks” mentality and downplay any compliments that come our way. I can tell you for certain that kind of thinking doesn’t come from God or the Bible.

God made you. He created you exactly how He wanted you to be and no matter how many scars and breaks and bruises and messes you may have accumulated along the way, He still loves the work of His own hands– you. No matter how you may have been rejected or friend-zoned by girls or guys, God is enraptured and enamored and captivated by you. He is completely and totally crazy in love with you.

I’m loving being me. I can say that I’m not like anybody else out there. That doesn’t make me odd. That might make me eccentric. What that does make me for absolute certain is unique. There is no one in the whole wide world quite like me, and I like that.

I love that I can be socially awkward at times. I love that I can be overly enthusiastic in my friendliness and sometimes be perceived as coming across a little creepy.  That’s okay. Aside from maybe needing to visit Decaf-land from time to time, I’m fine if not every single person likes what I have to offer. Many people were turned off by Jesus.

I love that when God sees me, He sees Jesus. He sees beauty and perfection and wisdom and strength beyond measure. He sees my very best self, the one only hinted at in my best moments of selfless devotion. He sees the finished product of who I will become.

As of this moment, I refuse to take on myself any names other than the ones He has given me. Not from family or friends. Not from co-workers. Not even from me. I don’t have to be defined by words spoken in frustration or anger or resignation. I am no longer the mistakes I’ve made or the chances I’ve missed or the good intentions coming up short.

I am Forgiven. I am Set Free. I am Redeemed. I am A New Creation. I am Blameless.

Of all the names God has given me, my favorite is this: I am His Beloved Son in whom He is well pleased.

My hope and prayer for you tonight is to let go of all the names you or anyone else has called you out of hate or anger and embrace the name given in love by your Creator and Redeemer and Savior. Listen to Him calling you His Beloved Child. Hear Him singing His delight over you and smiling over you. Let your life be defined by God’s pleasure over you instead of people’s disappointment in you.

I truly hope and pray that you will come to the point where you can truly and honestly say that you love being you.