Maybe sometimes we are harder on ourselves than God himself.
And sometimes, we look at ourselves, and condemn ourselves for our faults and our transgressions. We see all the times when we were not enough and we believe that God is quick to judge and very quick to condemn us and dislike us. We see disappointment and believe that His grace has not extended far enough to reach us.
And maybe that is because we base our relationship with God on the works of our hands, on the times when we think we are perfect and holy, on the number of laws we keep, on the way we dress, on how much skin we hide, on the relationships we do not have with people outside of our belief. We base it on the lifting of our hands and how joyfully we sing all the songs during worship, we base it on the wealth and possessions we have accumulated to call ourselves blessed.
See, this is the reason why at that time we fall into all these things, we find it difficult to justify them.
We allow ourselves to be defined by all of this. We focus so much on these things that we actually believe that our relationship with God is ultimately based on these things. That this is what you need to feel welcomethat they may be saved. And that is exactly how we despise the greatness of God’s glory. Our relationship with God will never be based on these material things. We just did that.
The truth is, God looks at us differently.
When he looks at us, he sees love. He sees His children, coming to Him, trying and winning no matter how difficult the circumstances are, no matter how difficult and challenging life is. When he looks at us, he sees the difficulties but he sees our faith even more. He sees how much hope we have in our conflict and he respects that, because he is a faithful God. And no matter how small our faith is, it matters to Him.
Our heart is very important to Him.
When he looks at us, all he feels is compassion, for our mistakes, our shame and sin and our shortcomings. His heart is full of forgiveness. And the more we feel dirty, the more He holds us. I believe that. He is a God whose love and grace are unconditional and everlasting. And He doesn’t point us to material things, not to riches or relationships, not to labels or good works – He points us to Himself alone. Our worth is found only in him. And this is the true foundation of our relationship with Him.
If God – who holds heaven and earth in His hands, who sent His salvation to us – sees us with such gentleness and unwavering praise in His eyes, maybe it’s time to forgive ourselves. Treat yourself with less cruelty and more kindness. Maybe it’s time to look at ourselves and our walk with God as a work in progress, that every day, we may fail, but we try. With hearts fixed on Him, they hold His hope.
Maybe it’s time to look at ourselves the way God looks at us.
That we are wonderfully made, that we are enough, no matter who we are, how we preach, how much we raise our hands, who we build relationships with. Regardless. He looks directly into our hearts, their intentions and motives.
Because at the end of the day, it’s true, God looks at us differently. And how you see us – it should shine through in everything we do, in the way we love people, the way we treat people, how we live.
