Tag: Change

Man Never Measures Up

Have you been hurt by someone who claims to be a Christian? Do you wonder why God allows bad things to happen? Do you question if He exists based on these things?

If you’re human, your answer is probably a resounding YES!

I have a few friends, from all walks of life, who have decided that they want nothing to do with God or deny His existence based on hurts perpetrated by those who claim to know Him.  And while my heart aches for the hurt they’ve endured, I’m deeply saddened by the joy they miss out on. 

I’m no theologian, nor do I have the space here to dive into a deep philosophical discussion.  What I can do is present my experience and belief and let you be the judge. 

Humans are flawed. There is not one who is perfect, except Jesus, when He spent time on Earth as a human. Everyone else? Mistake ridden, evil hearted, self-serving, flawed people.  The only ones who have managed to take a step in a better direction are those who have a relationship with God. And even then, they are full of miscalculation, unintended slights, and general obliviousness to others’ feelings. For those people, they’ve never intended to hurt others, but it still happens. 

Well, why does God allow it? Good question. Of course, the only logical answer is that if you want all that to stop, you just have to end humanity.  Completely.  Harsh.

I’ve heard, “Well, He could just stop them from doing that.” True. But then that takes away their choice, their free will. If He takes away theirs, then it takes away yours by default. Is that really what you want?

God desires us to get to know Him, really get to know Him, by choice. What kind of relationship is it if you’re there because you have to be? How much sweeter is it, when you’re there because you want to be? Once you get introduced to Him, He wants you to make decisions based on your relationship with Him.  I would no sooner buy a car without my husband’s input than I would take a job without God’s. He desires a real relationship where He is talked with (not to), where He is consulted for decisions, and where He gets to spend time with you.  But it is your decision.  Always.  He will not brow beat you.  He will not take away your free choice to decide on Him.

On the other hand, the humans that you measure God by constantly fail.  Man will never measure up. So if you are turning your back on God because of man, your eyes are on the wrong measuring stick. 

It’s hard to live in a world where people run rampant over others and their feelings, but there is One who rules over all of it. If you let Him, He can rule over your heart.  He can help you find compassion, faith, peace, and true joy.  Better than that, He can help you grow in them.  You may find some pale, anemic form of those things without Him.   With Him, though, you can grow it tenfold!

That, my friends, should be the goal.  Grow compassion.  Grow faith.  Grow peace.  Grow joy.  Become less like the self-serving people that offend and hurt.  Become more like God,  abounding in patience and kindness.  Let God guide you into a life filled with peace and joy and understand that it IS guidance and not control. 

He isn’t doing mass manipulation. 

He’s doing individual improvement. 

So the person you’ve allowed to be the measuring stick is still in their own improvement plan. That’s assuming they’re friends with Him. Don’t let the ones who don’t measure up (as in everyone, everywhere) stop you from claiming the joy that He brings when you open up to Him. 

Everything is between you and Him. Make Him your confidant.  He’s the only one who measures up.

If you don’t know Him as your friend, start now! Pray this prayer:

Lord, thank You for caring about me.  Thank You for coming to earth, dying on the cross, raising to life, and giving me hope and a future.  Please forgive me of my sins and make me new by becoming the Lord of my heart.  I invite You to lead me each day to get to know You better.  Thank You for saving me. I pray this in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

 

You are new!

You are new!

Are you struggling with sins of the past? Do you wonder what God could ever see in you? Do you think you have too many scars to be of any value? We have all felt that way, at some point in our lives. But we have hope! God tells us that He loves us. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. So His love for us never changes! Still not sure? Let me introduce you to Snuggles.

20250416_202736724081514975231293

When I was around six years old, I was given a doll as a gift. She was the most beautiful thing ever, as far as I was concerned. I didn’t even know I needed her until I met her. I loved everything about her! Her blond hair was beautiful. Her soft purple body was comforting. The mechanism that made her snuggle amazed me. I couldn’t imagine not loving her. Almost instantly (possibly that same night) I got sick and threw up on her. I was horrified! She was the best thing ever and I just made the biggest mess! On her! Then in an attempt to clean her up, it was decided to put her in the washing machine. That was a mistake. By the time she got through the washing and air drying, her snuggle mechanism was seriously affected. It no longer worked properly. And then over the years there were accidents. A tear here, a lost thread there; and her hair started getting that tangled shabby look. But I still loved her. None of the scars changed how I felt about her. She was the first doll I ever remember owning and she was special to me. That was over 40 years ago and I still have her. My friend, Carolyn, helped me straighten out her hair, removed the defective snuggle mechanism, and patched up any holes. And while she looks better, she will never look the way she did coming out of the box.

“For great is His love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the LORD.” Psalm 117:2

Do you think that those stitches on her body affected the way I felt about her? Did the missing mechanism change my feelings? Did the crazy hair change how I looked at her? Does it change how I see her now? Does it make me love her less? Absolutely not! In fact, she is more precious to me because she has survived these things! And yes, I still have her. She has been with me through multiple moves. It didn’t matter if items were lost. Lack of space was never an issue. It doesn’t matter that I am old enough now to pass her down to a grandchild when they come along. Do you know that the Lord loves you in this same way? He doesn’t see the scars. He doesn’t care how messy you are. He just loves you. You. Exactly the way you are. He loves you too much to leave you that way, but He loves you in spite of the mess and the scars.

God cherishes us. It’s even better than the way I cherish this poor 40+ year old doll. The doll has stitches, crazy hair, and a missing mechanism but I love her. And He loves us.  Each of us.  In our own way.  But He loves us too much to let us stay ragged and dirty. He loves us enough to want us to be better, to be more like Him.  Can you imagine if I had kept the doll but never washed the vomit off of her? What if I had never repaired the holes in her body? She would still be precious to me, certainly. But I can guarantee that I would not have her near me where I could smell her or see her. I am human, though. Our stench does not offend God. There is nothing that you could do, have done, or are doing that makes Him love you less.  Nothing.  But He isn’t going to leave you the way you are, either. As you come to Him (with your mess, your brokenness, and your wounds) He is faithful to meet you. He is faithful in His love for you. And He gently prods us to put away the old and become new in Him.

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” Ezekiel 36:26

I have put much repair into Snuggles. Despite this, she will never look exactly the same as when she came out of the box. We, as God’s children, have a different outcome. As we grow in God, we become more like Him. We have the eternal promise that one day, no one will be able to see our scars. When we enter heaven, we will have nothing of the old slowing us down. No shame to hold us back. No fear of people’s opinions to make us shrink into ourselves. We will be new in Christ and He will be our light! Between here and eternity, we can get a head start on letting God make us new. A daily talk with Him, time in His word are some steps we can take now. Studying who God is and who we are in Him will lead us into more life changing steps. These steps will help stitch up the broken seams, wash the filth from us, and remove the broken elements. These steps will make us into even more newness. The more of these steps you take, the less you look like the old you! The less you look like the old you, the more you look like Christ! Snuggles can never look as she did when she was new. Even if she is clean and fully repaired, that new look is lost forever. Unlike Snuggles, we have a greater hope! We can be transformed into something that doesn’t even resemble the person we once were. What a testimony! What a signal of hope to someone else who feels that their scars are too much for God.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” 2 Corinthians 5:17