Too often, we allow ourselves to be abused for so long that we learn to abuse ourselves, so instead of wearing the armor of God, we choose a covering of victimization. It feels safe even though damaging.
That said, it’s common to struggle with self-love, even for those who love Jesus. I encourage you to believe you are worthy of love, despite what others may have told you. So let’s focus on practicing self-compassion and treating ourselves with kindness and respect by beginning to respect Jeuss more than opinions, religion, or self-doubt.
One of the most challenging hurdles to overcome as a Christian is not loving Jesus but letting go of what is comfortable, and for many people worldwide, the pain of the past seems right even when everything about it feels wrong.
That said, loving yourself does not mean riding out false pride and conceit to self-soothe so no one sees your pain. It doesn’t mean minimizing God’s gifts in others to appear to be the most gifted when it’s not real. Why suffer the consequences of doing what is wrong when God upholds the righteous?
Today let’s follow Jesus Christ and trust that He has the power to change us; by His teachings, we learn to respect ourselves and others, and more importantly, we learn to forgive the lies of broken people, even our family.
We must choose to disbelieve the forces that keep the generational bleeding in families alive while we die inside. Without a doubt, Satan is out to steal, kill, and destroy, but Jesus came to bring life to its fullest potential.
Through Christ, we learn to love and appreciate the beauty in all of God’s creation, which includes you, me, and the innocent ones, the unborn and little.
The poor and rich!
At the same time, and with the same measure of love and compassion, we must love the unloved, the suffering and sick, the disabled and well, and the broken, scared, and abandoned while turning away from injustice and abuse.
We are not worthless!
We are all made in the likeness and image of God, both male and female. He created us. And in case you weren’t aware that in God’s word, the last thing God said in this passage is,
“And He blessed them.”
God’s perfect creation that’s who we are, not that we are perfect but perfectly created by GOD IN all colors, sizes, shapes, strengths, and weaknesses.
Indeed God created some of us to endure more hardship in life to be used to promote His glory. Yes, some are a little more robust than others so that in our brokenness, we could learn to relate to the broken who need what Christ has to offer.
Remember, God’s creations were born to live, love, learn, laugh, eat, sleep, forgive, and be forgiven.
Treat people with respect.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Christine’s Cornerstone
Featured Image by Andre Hunter on Unsplash
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