Many times in our lives, we are knocked down by the words other people, spouses, or family members have spoken over us. For some reason it is much easier for us to believe the negativity than to believe what God has said about us. I remember times in my own life when people tore me down because I wasn’t living up to their expectations as a pastor’s wife. I was literally told by meaningful “christians” that I wasn’t good enough, I wasn’t outgoing enough, I wasn’t talented enough, and I was holding my husband’s ministry back. Each verbal dagger pierced my heart and caused me to lose sight of my true identity. I felt stuck in a position I never asked to be in. I was thrown into a state of depression and anxiety. Ministry was a far cry from the loving church I grew up in and I didn’t want any part of it because of the cruelty we were experiencing. I couldn’t just leave the situation because I and my husband are one and I wanted to support him in his calling. I sat there quietly, taking each slanderous comment. It began to affect how I viewed church and God. I didn’t feel love from the Father because I was comparing His love to the christians so-called love. My perspective was becoming clouded. I had to relearn what God had to say about my true worth.
Romans 5:8 states, “But God demonstrated His own love towards us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
He died for me….He died for you. I was important enough to Jesus to be on HIs mind while He was on the cross.
Kyle Idleman wrote a book titled, “God’s at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart,” and he talks about God’s pursuing love for us. He states that, “This is a God who, when turned down, ignored, rejected-even violently, even blasphemously-finds a new way to express His love and issue the invitation. This is a God who has never given up on winning your heart.”
When you feel beat down, depressed and broken by what other people have spoken about you, remember there is a God who adores you. He is a God that in spite of all our weaknesses, in spite of all our sin, in spite of all our ugliness, still pursues us and wants a relationship with us. This love is too hard to comprehend. And yet, there are times in my life when I doubt God’s love for me. From the story I told above, I didn’t think God loved me because the church people kept speaking negatively about me and my family. It’s really hard to believe God loves you when your whole world seems to be falling apart. I think as people we are so programmed by societies thinking about love, that our minds are warped with carnal thinking and believing instead of Godly thinking and believing. God’s love in not like human love which is often based on fickle feelings. His love is a love that we can not even begin to comprehend.
There are many times when the hurt and pain we experience in our relationships is carried over to how we relate our relationship with God. A child rejected by an earthly parent, for example, may grow up feeling rejected by the heavenly Father. We need to realize human love is going to fail and not meet every one of our needs. There have been many times when I have looked to my husband to meet my emotional needs only for it to end up in disappointment when he falls short of my expectations. Only God can meet our every need. We need to stop looking to other people to meet our needs or affirm our worth. Only God can be to us everything we will ever need. His love is perfect and not lacking in any area. He loves us so much that Isaiah 49:11 says:
“See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.”
Isn’t that beautiful? God has us inscribed on His hand. He is always watching over us (even when we feel all alone). During times when it feels like God doesn’t care or God doesn’t love us, we need to remember that He literally has us in the palm of His hand. He loves us more than we could ever imagine and He wants us to believe what He says about us.
In spite of our past mistakes, in spite of our sin, in spite of all of our flaws, we are loved and pursued by a God who NEVER gives up on us. Romans 8:38-39 says:
“For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
It is so encouraging to know that we are being pursued relentlessly by a God who has an all-consuming love for us. If we could begin to grasp His love, many of the fears and doubts about who we are and about circumstances in our lives would be erased because there would be no reason to ever fear or doubt. God is holding each of us and whispering our name telling us it’s ok. We are God’s masterpiece, created in His image, and no abusive, mean, negative word could ever change the fact that God thinks we are pretty special.
Your worth surpasses all earthly things because in the eyes of the Father, you are loved with a relentless, unconditional, immeasurable love. I had to relearn this to get out of my depressed state. I am still learning that my true worth is not dependent upon what people say about me. We are so important to God. I pray that something I wrote today would minister to you and help you overcome the bondage of low self-esteem because of words spoken over you.
Finding Joy In Today 