He Loves Us, Flaws and All

I was a very shy kid and struggled to fit in at school. At home, my older brother teased me endlessly. Yet, I knew my family loved me. I also knew Jesus loved me and was always with me. By middle school I was also teased at school because I was tall and my pants weren’t quite long enough, plus my clothes weren’t the cool brands. I also got teased because I attended church and my favorite necklace was a gold cross my mom gave me for Christmas. Despite the teasing, I knew that I belonged to God and that Jesus loved me even if my peers didn’t accept me, let alone share my faith. I felt that on some level God understood my struggles; after all, He created me and took on flesh in Jesus Christ. But by high school it became harder to remember that God was always with me. I wanted badly to fit in and began to buckle under peer pressure. What could it hurt? Was having a little fun a bad thing? Wouldn’t Christ understand me and all my human flaws? In college, when my roommate teased me for attending a Christian group on campus, I started going to church less often, and I felt less and less lovable, especially by Christ. I felt ashamed for praying only when I needed somethinglike a good grade on a tEsther I felt like I was drifting further from the love of Christ. Finally, my pastor from back home reminded me that our Heavenly Father never leaves us even when we turn away from Him. He wants nothing more than to love us, to forgive us, and to have us return to Him. In one of the parables Christ told, a lost son returns home after going astray, and the father and the community rejoice! Christ also told a parable of a shepherd going out to find one lost sheep. When we go astray, Christ comes after us. And when we return to God, He rejoices! Lisa A. Wroble Have you ever felt like you were drifting away from God’s love? Even when we pull away from God, He keeps loving us. How might God be inviting you to come to Him today? Have you experienced or observed something that caused you to wonder if God is good? In these times, we can look to Jesus, who revealed God’s deep love and kindness when He died on the cross. Now the risen Jesus invites us to come to Him with all our questions, frustrations, and fears. He can take it. I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness. Jeremiah 31:3b (NIV)

Read Verses:

Matthew 18:12-Matthew 18:14; Luke 15:11-Luke 15:24; Jeremiah31:3