appreciation Archives

Have you ever wondered, ‘Who am I?’ ‘Does life have any meaning?’ and ‘What is the purpose of my life?’

When we don’t know our identity and the answers to these questions, we don’t ‘live,’ we just drift along life’s journey, pushed by one current or another. What others say becomes very important for us. We hang on to every word they say, yearn for their acceptance and appreciation… but even when we hear some words of appreciation, we feel hollow inside. Is that how you feel?

The journey to discovering ‘self’ is tough

I’ve been there, done that. I spent years longing for acceptance and love. I just had no ‘self-concept’ though I did well in certain things while growing up. Others would have thought I was very confident as I won prizes and seemed to do well in studies and extra-curricular activities. But inside I felt empty, invisible and unwanted.

While growing up we base our self-value on how much love is shown to us. A child who is doted on by his or her parents will feel very confident, important and loved whereas a child who is rejected by members in the family will tend to feel useless, lost and unloved.

The truth is that whether others love you or not doesn’t say anything about you. It actually speaks about them and their hearts. But unfortunately, that is not how the unloved ones feel… they take the lack of love to mean that they are not worthy of being loved, that they are somehow defective pieces, not on par with others.

Feeling unloved leads to self-hatred

Not being loved leads a lot of people to think their lives don’t matter. They turn against themselves and do acts of self-harm or behave in detrimental and self-destructive ways. Many people, when confronted about such behavior will turn around and say, ‘I don’t care!’

It is true, if they really cared, they would have thought about what they were doing and avoided doing those things that would hurt themselves, their reputation, their bodies, their health, and even their soul. On the contrary, those who have a positive self-image usually care for themselves.

We tend to attribute the things that happen to us to God. If bad things happen, some people would think ‘God is bad! He doesn’t love me!’ or ‘I am so worthless even God doesn’t love me! Everyone else has a better life, my life sucks!’ Thus we distance ourselves from God and go deeper into a hole.

The truth is that God loves each of His children. He would never tell a parent to ill-treat his or her child. He is a God of love, it hurts Him to see His children suffer. It hurts Him when parents abandon their child, neglect or are indifferent to their children.

He is the ultimate parent and He cares for each of His children.

How much does God care for you?

Psalm 139:13-18 speaks about how much we mean to God. It says, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you.” NIV

When I was going through the worst time in my life, I discovered God’s great love for me in Isaiah 43:1-4. It says, “But now, this is what the Lord says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you, nations in exchange for your life.” NIV

Lessons I have learned from hardship

I learned through those years of difficulty that the God of Israel is a God who keeps His word. He was with me in those years when it felt like I was in the fire or drowning without anyone to help me those times of adversity. He won me over with His love.

Ever since I gave my heart to Him, I have found that His love has only increased and His faithfulness is something I am sure of, more sure than I can ever be of myself.

In Psalm 91:14-16, it says, “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.” NIV

Are you struggling to know who you are? Are you wondering whether you have any worth or value as a person?

Have you been rejected by the people you loved – by your family or friends? Have you suffered heartbreak after heartbreak and reached a point where you feel you just cannot go on?

Call out to God and He will answer

In Psalm 120:1 David said, “In my distress I cried to the Lord, and He answered me.” NIV

Call out to God, the One who created you, and He will answer you. He is a witness of everything you have been through, He doesn’t need proof or anyone to testify about what happened to you. He is waiting for you to turn to Him so He can make things right for you. Will you give Him a chance to show you how much you mean to Him, how much He loves you?

If you have questions in your mind about life, justice, peace, fulfillment, love or anything else, you can ask Him! In Jeremiah 33:3 God says to us, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” NIV He speaks to us through His Word even today. He will speak to you too!

In Matthew 7:7,8 Jesus says to you, “Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you. For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened.” AMP

A story is told of a Minnesota radio station that reported about a stolen car in California. Police were staging an intense search for the vehicle and the driver. On the front seat of the stolen car sat a box of crackers that, unknown to the thief, were laced with poison to be used as rat bait. The police and the owner of the car were now more interested in apprehending the thief to save his life rather than to recover the car.

For too long, many of us have been fleeing from God in an attempt to escape His punishment, when in fact all we are actually doing is eluding His rescue. We all need saving, we’re driving about like lunatics in stolen cars with death sitting on the seat next to us. Sin has poisoned the human race from the beginning, the consequence of which is eternal death. We need to be apprehended, not because we’re criminals but because we need to be rescued; we need salvation.

The Gospel of Christ is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. The pure Gospel message is this: “if you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:10)

God calls us to Repent

By the Holy Spirit, the prophet Jeremiah, called God’s people to repentance. The people of Judah and Israel had abandoned the basics of God’s Law and embraced the worship of foreign gods. Through Jeremiah, God was calling His people to return to the fundamental truths of His Word. Sadly, they refused and suffered the consequences of their rebellion.

This Jewish rebellion was indicative of the rebellion of all mankind. Consequently, by His love and grace, more than 600 years after the Jews returned to Jerusalem, God sent His only begotten Son as Messiah, to reconcile all mankind to God’s glorious righteousness. Indeed, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

For God made Him who had no sin, to be sin for us so that in Him, we might become the righteousness of God. And thus the Church of Christ was born. His Gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the gentile.

Sadly, through the ages, the fundamental purity of the Gospel has become distorted by popular opinion. In fact, right from the very end of the first century, man’s opinions and selfish ambition began to creep into the Church. Therefore, Jesus Himself, gave instructions to the main churches spread out in Asia Minor, via the last of His foundation apostles, John. To the Church in Sardis He instructed John to write:

“I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent.” (Revelation 3:2-3)

In this postmodern 21^st Century liberal society, Christian moral ethics and the Biblical absolutes have been so blurred by that same popular opinion that, even in the Church we have lost sight of the basics of our faith. Therefore, Body of Christ, we need to wake up, return to God and strengthen what remains.

Strengthen What Remains

We are seeking to strengthen our salvation today. Jesus is the source of our salvation. Therefore, let us return to Jesus. He is “the way, the truth and the life and there is no other path to the Father but by Him”. The result of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus, as the Son of God and Son of Man, is God incarnate. That is to say, the man Jesus is the embodiment of the eternal holy and absolutely righteous God.

You see, Jesus needed to be man (Son of Man) so that He could suffer temptation and physical death on our part. But, because Jesus is also God (Son of God), after He bore the consequence of our sin on the Cross, He rose from the dead. God made Jesus a sin offering so that in Him, if we admit to our sin and put our faith in Him, we could become the righteousness of God. God loved you and me so much in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Jesus did it! Jesus reconciled us to the glory of God. Jesus made the way for our salvation. Today, strengthen what remains: your appreciation of salvation!

Gratitude for Salvation

God is calling us to strengthen what remains. Do you know Jesus? Have you confessed your sin and put your faith in Christ’s death and resurrection? Do you call Jesus Lord and Saviour? Then strengthen your understanding of the fundamentals of your salvation with gratitude to our loving Heavenly Father for making the way back to Him, though Jesus. God loved you and me so much that He sent His one and only begotten Son, that if we believe in Him we will have eternal life.

None of us can earn our salvation, because none of is qualified to match the standards of God’s perfect goodness. Therefore, let’s fall back on Jesus! Church isn’t our salvation. Worship isn’t our salvation. Good works aren’t our salvation. Giving money isn’t our salvation. Serving God isn’t our salvation. Watching Christian TV or reading Christian literature isn’t our salvation. Only Jesus is our salvation. So, let’s wake up and strengthen what remains; strengthen our gratitude for salvation through Jesus.

Do It Now!

Jesus said, “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

If you’ve never really given your heart to Jesus, do it now. If you’ve never really accepted your salvation by faith, come to Jesus now.

Pray with me…

Dear God, I’ve been driving around like a lunatic for too long, with death sitting on the seat right next to me. I realise today that I can’t do this in my own strength. Forgive me for clouding my walk with You by my own self-centred opinions and ambitions. Today, I humble myself and ask You to come into my life, dear Jesus. I confess and repent of all sin. I believe that You died and rose again so that I can be forgiven and cleansed. Today, Jesus, I put my faith in You; I give my life to You and declare You to be my personal Lord and saviour. Dear Lord, strengthen my appreciation of my salvation. Amen.

This article was written by Dudley Anderson of Sure Reality Media and pastor of Cornerstone Family Church. Dudley has a background in radio and is the author of God-Tracking Through the Year and Overflowing Hope. He also writes a weekly GodTracker devotional.

appreciation

The Search For Meaning: ‘Who am I?’