God made you on purpose. You are the special work of His hands and the delight of His heart. He is a proud Father because of you, and He loves your mind, your heart, and everything else He put together. You are a story He has wanted to tell since the foundation of the world.
The Bible repeatedly talks about His love for you and how He made you. Here are just two examples:
I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.
Before you were born I set you apart
and appointed you as my prophet to the nations. (Jer. 1:5 NLT)
Listen to Me, O house of Jacob,
And all the remnant of the house of Israel,
Who have been upheld by Me from birth,
Who have been carried from the womb. (Isa. 29:16 NKJV)
Some of us have a seriously hard time believing that our life is worth anything. Many years ago, likely before we were six years old, we experienced pain and consequently started to believe things that weren’t true: lies, fears, doubts, expectations of evil, false realities, etc.
We may not say these things out loud, but our heart can believe them as truth:
“God is not going to help me because I’ve made too many mistakes.”
“There is no point in hoping for a better future.”
“I always mess up. I can’t not mess up.”
“I am not worth His love.”
Pain pushes us to flee from our Creator. Instead of running to Him for help, we can react in deep, anger-filled rejection of what He says about us, simply because we are hurting. Unknowingly, we say no to the Lord and the good things He has for us. We reject the story He is writing for us, believing it is wrong or a mistake.
Choosing God’s Way
All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way. (Isa. 53:6 NKJV)
Because of past pain, all of us have “gone astray” and need to choose God’s way instead. We need to say yes to Him concerning who we are and how He made us, so we can see the truth about ourselves and rejoice. We are a prize to Him—so much more than we think we are.
Practically, how do we choose God’s way? What does that look like?
Wherever there is pain, that pain needs to be healed. This happens through the cross and the process of forgiveness and repentance. We forgive those who hurt us, repent for how we responded to the pain, forgive ourselves for anything we’ve been holding over our head all this time—and then we let God know we want the life He has for us.
Here is a simple prayer for choosing life:
Lord, I can see I haven’t chosen life. I have not understood and appreciated how You formed me, and in light of the pain I’ve experienced, I surely never would have chosen to embrace this life. Honestly, I often think You could have done better for me. I have judged You for creating me and my story “deficient.” I know I have wounded You by not receiving what You have for me. I choose by faith to accept myself and the life You’ve given me. Jesus, I choose life. Help me continue choosing You and choosing to be here. I ask You to open my eyes to see the wonderful gift You’ve given me. Release me into that abundant life You promise—the joy that comes from knowing I am wonderfully made and am a blessing to You and to my family and friends. Lead me into the joy of my birthright, the blessing of my inheritance from You.
May the life of God bring you life in all things and in all ways. May your heart begin to respond in faith, not doubt, and may you be able to look at yourself with great love and hope. He rejoices over you, and you get to rejoice too.
Do you want to become the person God made you to be? Do old feelings come back again and again to haunt you? Check out Life Transformed by the Sandfords. This book is about renewing your mind, which is like hitting the default button and going back to the original version of you in God. This revolutionary approach will help quiet the battleground where your thoughts and feelings rage. Click here to learn more!