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“He Loves Me; I Love Me Not!” That’s a twist on a game we played as kids with our daisy petals, but I think it illustrates a common struggle some of us have with appreciating who we are—loving, if you will, the wonderful work of God in us.
Comparing ourselves with others will certainly rob us of the joy of who we are. Yet another way we fail to appreciate God’s wonderful work in us is to live in regret. Do you constantly struggle with regrets from your past? Do you know that it breaks God’s heart when we refuse to accept the forgiveness he has made possible for us? Jesus died on Calvary to give us freedom from our pasts. He wants us to accept and live in the joy of his forgiveness.
Could it be that you can’t enjoy God’s forgiveness because you haven’t forgiven someone else? Jesus told us that if we don’t forgive others, we won’t know his forgiveness. Do you need to forgive someone? It could be the best gift you’ve ever given yourself.
Maybe the person you need to forgive is yourself. When we can’t put our soiled pasts behind us, we cannot live in the wonder of who we were created to be. Can you see how the enemy wants to keep you bound up in regret? Friends, let’s remind ourselves that God is in the business of taking people out of mud and mire, and putting our feet on solid rocks and giving us a new song. That’s what salvation is all about. Jesus reminded the disciples that he came to save sinners. So, please, forgive yourself. I don’t mean to diminish the awfulness of sin, but to remind you of the depth of God’s grace.
Do you often think about God’s grace to you? Isaiah 30:18 tells us, “Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; therefore, he will rise up to show you compassion.”
Isn’t that something: The Lord of all the universe longs to be gracious to us and to show us compassion! My friends, when we start to get that, it really changes how we see ourselves. We are valuable to God; we are valued by God. Appreciate it; be thankful for it; rejoice in it!
We don’t have to understand it. God is not like us. He doesn’t give and withhold love and compassion based on our performance. He doesn’t hold the past over our heads and throw it in our faces. No, he removes our sin and buries it in the depths of the deepest sea, and he puts up a “No Fishing” sign there. So, quit trying to be worthy of God’s grace. You never will be. That’s why it’s grace because you aren’t worthy. Just relax and appreciate who you are in Christ today.
Some things are loved because they are valuable. Some things are valuable because they are loved. We are valuable because God loves us.