Three related updates from the last two days from my social media page
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"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most" ~ Heb 4:16
As believers we know we can come 'boldly' into His presence to seek whatever we need at the time. But, as people we tend to think that we must ask for the barest minimum and/or do something in order to earn the right to ask for more. This is far from the truth and comes not from the Spirit's voice but comes out of our own flawed, insecure brokenness. For if we must "do" to receive, those would be wages not grace - something given solely to an employee, not a dearly loved child. For yes, you may be a servant of the Most High but you are, first and foremost, His child and His love for you is without equal.
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"How we view ourselves at any given moment may have very little to do with who we really are" ~ Gerald May
I find a great truth in this quote for I know that in my own life I have felt as though I have had my sh*t together and was all that one moment, and literally a minute later, felt as though I was the worst of the worst, and this without doing anything other than responding to thoughts in my head. This is one of the reasons why our identity and worth must come from something other than how we feel at the time, the choices we make or what we do - it must be based in something solid and unchanging. For the believer, this something is the fact that we are loved by God, and that, not "in spite" of our flaws and failings, but with them, just as we are with all our curves and rough edges
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You may say (or think), "I am a better Christian than so and so", or "I am not as good a Christian as whomever" - neither statement is true - you are merely either Christian or not. God neither shows favoritism nor compares one of His children to another. People, on the other hand, do this far too often. But know this: no matter where you are - or think you are - in your walk or faith, God loves you every bit as much as He loves me, your pastor and even the Apostles from the pages of the Bible. He does not think less of you but, He does not think more of you either. We all stand equal - as dearly loved children - before Him.
