Love of You

Junior high girls can be a pain. Now, I love each one of them, and I know some awesome ones. As I have two sisters who went through that stage pretty recently (and thus, all their friends at the same time), I do have a bit of knowledge on the subject. Each girl is great, but when you have a bunch of junior high girls together...things can get ugly. Often they take every overlook, slight, or even friendly comment to heart as a personal insult. Girls of this age are usually insecure about who they are and are completely hung up on their perceived flaws. So every comment, look and action is taken to be someone purposely rubbing salt in their wounds. It breaks my heart what some of these girls put themselves through. They buy into lies about what they should look like, act like and be. They're battered by the world and often don't let anyone in. They hurt, and are convinced that they are alone and let their wounds fester. It seems that nothing you say to them can assure them that they are beautiful the way they are and that you, and God, truly care.

That is just an example of something I've seen a lot. Each one of us buys into some of Satan's lies. Whether it's you're not good enough, you can't do it, or you've messed up too much; he manipulates your fears and faults to paralyze you. It breaks my heart when people I care about go through tough times... But the worst to me is when they don't see the beauty God's created them with. Each and every one of you is an amazing person worth more than life to our great Jesus. Yes, we each have flaws. There are parts of me I hate, but I also know that God considers me precious and valuable. Everyone in this world is someone special whom God loves, and each one can become more beautiful as they grow in Christ. You have potential, to be perfect and do something amazing. This song describes in better words than I can what God can do with every aspect of you.

God can take your deepest fear and biggest flaw and turn them into something beautiful. God is in the business of changes lives by changing you. His love is unconditional. Think about it, there is nothing about you that God doesn't know about. He still loves you, he always will. Please, dwell on that and let it sink in.

"What then shall we say to these things?" If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised--who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger or sword? As it is written, 'For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 8:31-39

Have you ever thought about how God loves you? Take every love song you've ever heard, and multiply it by ten. You're not there yet. And God's love is perfect. He'll never let you down. He'll never let you go. He's not hiding any part of himself. He's not going to change. If you let yourself really muse about this...well, it's amazingly comforting and uplifting. You are so important to God! You don't have to do anything to earn his love, you had it even before you were born! Listen to this song and imagine it's God singing to you.

Isn't that amazing? The tip of the iceberg is breathtaking. And there is so much more for us to discover. Please, take some time today to remember God's love for you and let it change your life.

By God's grace,
Ericka