Good!

(For the audio version of this blog post, click here)

Have you ever felt condemned? What about defeated or misunderstood?  Or all the above all at the same time? The more you try, the more pronounced these feelings become? And even if they’re irrational, the fact that you feel them means you experience them.

Maybe you have an idea of that one thing that would take away all the hurt found in this miserable place: If only she would say one nice affirming word! If only he would come back! If only they would hear me out! If only I could show them this! Then all would be well! I’d feel whole, happy, content. I’d feel good.

Only thing is, she may never say one nice affirming thing. He may never come back. They probably won’t ever hear you out. And, “showing them” won’t necessarily convince them.

What if instead of striving to leave this miserable place by way of seeking the approval of others, we do so by embracing the approval we’ve been extended in Christ!

“. . . there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1

Our sense of being a good person should not depend on who we are in the eyes of others, but rather on who we are in Christ. Psalm 16:2 puts it this way: “. . . You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.” Christians attain self-worth and esteem by having a right relationship with God. Period. All other attempts to “feel good” will lead to more feelings of emptiness, at worst, or a temporal gratification our flesh at best. We can, instead, know we are valuable and good because of the high price our God paid for us through the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ.

He loves you. He approves of you. You are valuable. You won. You are His.

Are you ready to let those truths edify your soul?

Good!