Pastor’s Desk October 21st

Scripture Passage:  “I will praise you; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are your works; and that my soul knows right well.  My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.  Your eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in your book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.  How precious also are your thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them.”   Psalms 139:14-17
 
Dear Friends,
 
     There are many people that I come in contact with that question the value and importance of their lives.  They are self- depreciating with low self- esteem and an overwhelming sense of unworthiness.  They live in a constant state of depression fueled by feelings of inferiority.  The question is: “Who told you that you were not worth anything?”  “Who told you that you should never have been born?”  Was it a parent, sibling, or teacher?  Was it a bully on the playground or a spoiled diva who thinks more of themselves than they ought to?  The only one who has the right to make that call is your creator and He would never say such a thing.  He made you in His image and created you with a purpose in mind.  You are not like everyone else because God made you unique and beautiful in your own right.  Our value and worth come from God and it is time we stopped listening to the lies of the devil and started listening to the praise of our creator.  You are somebody because God does not make junk.
 
     There is nothing in the universe as complex as the human body.  I do not have the expertise or time to make a detailed list of all the marvelous and complex systems that make up the human body or its functions.  Many of these systems begin to work and form from the very moment of conception.  When you were only an embryo in your mother’s womb, God was actively at work in your life.  He knew which parts were forming and which parts were complete.  He gave you your eye color and your blood type.  He made you male or female and gave your characteristics and personalities to match.  He predetermined whether you would be short or tall, skinny or chunky. He gave you the color of your skin and the texture of your hair.  There was not one minute detail that He left out concerning your DNA.  So there is no one exactly like you on the whole earth.  You are one-of-a-kind and out-of-this-world awesome.  If God had wanted you to be an NFL athlete, He would have made you to fit that profile.  If He had wanted you to be the Beauty Queen He would have given you those traits and characteristics.  If He wanted you to be the next child prodigy or Rhode Scholar, He would have given you a brain equipped with those abilities.  Most of us are just normal, run- of- the- mill individuals who occasionally rise above our limitations and do extraordinary things.  I like to say that with God’s help, nothing is impossible.
 
       One of the handicaps I live with is the overwhelming feeling that I am not good enough.  Don’t laugh.  There are many people like myself who live in a constant state of question and fury trying to do enough to be accepted.  They feel that regardless of how hard they try, they never measure up or become the spouse, child, or employee others want them to be.  Little comments are made, harsh words are spoken, or promotions are passed over causing us to listen to the lies of Satan and live beneath our privilege of being a child of God.  We come to church and listen to the preacher preach and we leave feeling like we do not measure up to the standard set for the Christian life.  Just one more thing we have failed at.  The key to unlocking our future into a world of promise, peace, and satisfaction is grace.
 
     Regardless of what anyone says, no one lives a life of perfection, completeness, or sin-less-ness.  We all fail to live up to God’s standard all the time.  Everyone lives with some type of insecurity and self-conscious uncertainty that torments their mind.  Once again, this never comes from God for there is a difference between conviction and condemnation.  Where we are unworthy of forgiveness and righteousness in our own human depravity, the grace of God through our faith makes us worthy.  Where I am not enough by myself in my own abilities, I am more than enough through the grace of God given to us by Christ sacrificial death on the cross.  Where we feel we are never enough in our limitations, Christ makes us more than enough by giving us His robe of righteousness to wear.  It is high time we view ourselves through the lens of grace God sees us through.  We are more than enough because from the very beginning, we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
 
In Christ, Pastor Johnny

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