My Morning Thoughts

Original post: May, 12 2021. Edited.

As I was drinking my coffee, a million thoughts rushed through my head…as usual. I turned on a random religious program. I am not familiar with TV evangelists. This woman preacher had an accent of some sort and I believe her name was Sheila.

As soon as she began to speak, I was touched by the words she said. At the time I initially wrote this post two years ago, I felt separated from others, from society, because of my outward appearance. I was filled with thoughts that I was not good enough for friends, a partner, anyone. I felt judged on my outward flaws. Everyday grew more difficult for me. And I was greatly discouraged.

But the woman named Sheila said our negative thoughts go even deeper than discouragement. She said that with the thoughts we feel about ourselves, we tend feel that God harbors those same thoughts about us. I had never thought about that before…but yes, deep down inside I believe that God feels the same about me as I feel about myself.

And how wrong is that?

VERY!

We want to be accepted by the world. For whatever reason, we need the world’s approval in order to feel worthy to be alive. Jesus was despised by the world. The same world He came to save. And according to the Bible, Jesus’s outward appearance was nothing we would desire. That’s very different from the pictures and movies we see.

Isaiah 3:2
For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.

But the man Jesus who walked this earth was beautiful on the inside. Still, most rejected Him. His grief came from the rejection of His message not because of His outward appearance.

Isaiah 53:3-4
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.

I don’t need the world’s approval to find my worth. It took me forever to realize this. If my outward appearance keeps relationships from me so be it. My value is in God.

I’m not worthy of salvation but that was the sole purpose of Jesus coming to this earth. He died in our place and through His shed blood, we find our worthiness.

Our thoughts are bold and strong and they often mislead us. We tend to believe that God feels about us the way we feel about ourselves and that’s just not true.

Don’t let the world control your self-worth and devalue your life upon this earth. The world is not your judge. The world has no say in your salvation. Be happy today in who you are, even if you are in a season right now of discomfort. Fix what you can but don’t let your so-called flaws control (ruin) your day. Don’t let them supersede the good within you.

My outward appearance was a huge distraction to me for most of my 62 years. It kept me from living in peace. But I no longer carry that anchor. Only recently have I become free from that burden. Regardless if I am heavy or thin, or somewhere in between, I’m the same person on the inside.

Keep looking upward. Jesus knows how we feel every minute of our life. He took human form and felt all that we feel. He pushed forward with what really matters…the inward part of us. Our soul.

Find your peace today. Love and hugs.♥️

Andi

Photos: mine, except for the last one which was found on the internet.