June 10, 2018

You Are Loved

And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” – Matthew 3:17

Who are you struggling to please today? Is it your spouse or your children? Maybe a parent or a boss or a friend? Take a deep breath. You are enough.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the expectations and demands of others that we miss the simple truth of a loving God. He is pleased with us. We belong to Him and we are enough. We don’t have to do anything, provide anything, be anything. He loves us without any of that.

The sad truth is that we will always disappoint people. And they will disappoint us. No one can always meet the expectations of another person. We might be irritable, we might be busy, we might not be physically or financially able to take care of what they want.

Somehow, we always expect people to be better than they are. We expect our children to always have perfect manners. We expect our boss to always value us and give us lots of pay raises and plenty of time off. We expect our friends to always have time to do what we want, when we want. And we get upset when they aren’t always able to live up to our expectations.

Who are we to demand so much from others? And who are they to demand so much from us?

It’s just such a relief to know that we don’t have to perform in order to earn God’s love and acceptance. We don’t have to be perfect. He loves us when we’re irritable and when we mess up and when we don’t have a clue. With God, it’s not about bank account balances and what we can give Him. He’s God. It’s all His anyway.

He wants our love. That’s all. Because when we love God, everything else falls into place. It becomes about Him and not about us. It becomes about serving Him, living for Him, placing Him first.

How would your life change if you truly understood that you are a beloved child of God? Would you make different choices if you truly felt His love and acceptance? What steps would you take if you knew that you lived in the security of His arms?

Jesus never doubted God’s love. He had many trials during his time on this earth but He knew that His strength came from God the Father. He understood that time alone with God would direct His steps. Do you remember what Jesus did before He chose the twelve disciples? He prayed. Alone, I might add.

We are such achievers. We value ourselves based on the opinions of others. We tell ourselves we are worthy based on what we own. We lift ourselves up and call it self-confidence when it’s really just pride. We are nothing without God. And we are everything with Him.

Today is a new day. You are human. You will make mistakes in this day. Something will irritate you. You’ll say the wrong thing. You’ll disappoint someone who was counting on you. You’ll do the best you can and it will never be enough to satisfy the demands.

Take a deep breath. Rest in your Father’s love. Say you’re sorry if it’s appropriate. Try again. Reach out to others in love. Offer them the same grace you’ve been given. Be quick to forgive and slow to lash out.

God loves you. Let that soak in as you go through your day. Feel His Presence. You’ve got this because He’s with you every step of the way.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Do You Hear God Calling?

John’s clothes were woven from camel hair, and he wore a leather belt; his food was locusts and wild honey. People from Jerusalem and from every section of Judea and from all over the Jordan Valley went out to the wilderness to hear him preach. -- Matthew 3:4-5

What would you think of John the Baptist if you met him today? Would you cross the street rather than pass right by him? Would you ignore him? Would you laugh and point? Or would you listen to his message and realize that what he was saying was something you really needed to hear?

Pastor Meghan spoke yesterday about letting the hustle and bustle of the season drown out things we really need to see and hear. We are so focused on shopping and parties and cooking and kids that we forget to make room for the baby in the manger.

Our world is much like the wilderness in which John preached, Pastor Meghan told us. She’s right. Look around you. This past year has brought greater political discord in our nation. Storms ripped through the country, sowing devastation and taking lives. People are homeless and hungry, jobless and sick. Abuse seems rampant with no end in sight.

It’s hard, sometimes, to see the light when everywhere we look just seems so dark. Maybe that’s one reason the holiday season is hard for those who are alone or grieving. Pastor Meghan noted that the blues just seem to be magnified during this joyous season.

But we are not alone. God hears our cries. He sees the strain the busyness of life causes us. He knows the traumas we push down deep inside. He is calling to us -- if we will only hear His voice.

Isaiah had spoke of John when he said, “He is a voice shouting in the wilderness: ‘Prepare a pathway for the Lord’s coming! Make a straight road for him!’” -- Matthew 3:3

Do you hear God calling you to Him? Do you long to answer Him, to be the person He has called you to be? You can be you know. Not by your strength or knowledge, but with His. As Pastor Meghan pointed out, we all need to hear the Good News that God has come down to rescue us, to save us from ourselves and this world of sin.

At Christmas we don’t just celebrate a baby lying in a manger. We celebrate God’s Son, who came down from Heaven to live among us and save us through His blood. That baby became our salvation. That’s what we need to know, to hear and to see.

God has prepared a path for you. The way is straight. Do you hear God calling you? Listen and repent. Receive His forgiveness and know what it is like to truly live.