Good enough for God?


I have moments where, more frequently than not, I feel like a failure; I’m not living up to my potential in Christ, and therefore am disappointing Him. No matter how hard I try or seem to be following His Guidance and Direction- I feel like I fall short of success. But then again… I am only measuring success by my standards, not His. In those moments of my self-doubt, I seek His forgiveness as the guilt chokes me.

Have you ever felt like you weren’t good enough for God? It’s overwhelming to think, or rather know that we will never measure up to the standards that Jesus set. Perspective is a grand thing. And we all fall short in remembering that we don’t have near the perspective that God has. When we feel like the biggest failure, after all of our hard work, perseverance, trust, faith… and we still don’t ‘succeed’- we’re only a failure in our eyes. God sees all; He knows all. And He knows our hearts.

You will never be perfect like Christ; and God knows that. He doesn’t expect perfection. And He isn’t surprised at our imperfections. Psalm 139:13 and Jeremiah 1:5 tell us God knew us before we were born. Before we were formed in our mother’s wombs, He knew us. Meaning, He knew what He was getting before He got it. He knew what you would become before you came. So if He knew who you would be and what you would do, and still made you… how can He be disappointed? And if He’s not disappointed in you, why are you disappointed in you? He doesn’t want you to be guilt-ridden. When you mess up (and you will- and He knows when you will before you do), acknowledge your mistake, repent and accept His forgiveness. And thanks to Jesus, that’s all you have to do.

So quit being embarrassed that you messed up. Quit thinking you failed. The reminder I need daily is that God loves me (you), for me (you). There are no conditions on His Love. Because God’s Love is perfect- you don’t have to be1. (1 John 4: 16-18) God made you and me in His image. (Genesis 1:27) He sees beyond your mistakes and says ‘there’s My Masterpiece; that’s My Child.’ (Ephesians 2:10) He already sees us as ‘good’ because He created us. We don’t have to always strive to be more than we are. We need to accept that who we are is who God made us to be. “Let’s set our minds and hearts on feeling more thankful for what we are than guilty for what we’re not. Let’s cut the threads of guilt with grace.”2 And His Grace is enough. It’s more than we deserve, but everything He’s willing to give us. (Ephesians 2:8) He sent His perfect Son to die for our imperfections. If we truly accept that, then we can truly accept we are His. (Ephesians 2:18) It’s not who you are, it’s to Whom you belong. (Romans 1:6) And you’re a child of God. Accept it and embrace it.

1: A Confident Heart, Chapter 2: Renee Swope
2: Lysa TerKeurst, (Proverbs 31 Ministries )December 30, 2013 Facebook post

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