He loves you, He really, REALLY loves you...

I think there are times in our life that we look up and find ourselves in places that are just uncomfortable. We find ourselves working a job that we can honestly say we hate, or we find ourselves working with people that are difficult in every sense of the word. We find ourselves in a relationship with someone we thought we were building a future with and, come to find out, there was no future at all. Or we could find ourselves restless, unhappy, stressed out and fearful in very aspect of life. We cannot sleep; we gain weight and eat hardly nothing at all. We are grouchy for no reason, we cry at the very thought of not having a good hair day and nothing seems to go right. We feel empty, we are lost, we have no direction, we are lonely and we are just plain pissed off at the world.

The thought of a nice relaxing bubble bath is just too much to pull together at the end of our day. The thought of a warm cup of coffee is not worth the expense. The thought of a new pair of shoes makes us also think about the pain that goes along with breaking them in and they are just not worth it. We are not worth it.

I think there are times when we just feel overwhelmed, overworked, overextended and overspent. And to top it all off, the One, the Only, the Savior above all seems to have hidden His face from us, as if we have disappointed Him too. Well, just when I thought I could not do one more day, He showed up. He reminded me that I am covered; I am covered by His grace, His mercy and His power. I am covered. I am not left out there to merely survive on my own. He has not set this life before me just so He can turn His back. He has not left me. He will not leave me. He will not throw me under the bus.

I am HIS and HE is mine and there is nothing that will ever change that. That cannot be undone. I will not be replaced by the newer, prettier, younger, and smarter. I will not be replaced. I have had the opportunity to spend my days at a job that is extremely regimented; needless to say there is a limited supply of grace. And days turn into weeks and weeks turn into months before I am reminded of exactly who it is that I work for. There is no pressure to be perfect when the most perfect one of all is the captain of my team. There is no shame in making mistakes and needing a fresh start come morning when the giver of freedom and forgiveness hung on a cross just for me. There is freedom as I stand under the cross that held my Savior. There is safety amidst the arms of the very one who died for me. There is unconditional, everlasting love from the Father who sent his one and only son to die the most painful of deaths for perfectly imperfect me.

When I stop and think about the power that comes with my relationship with my Sweet Jesus I am brought to my knees. Better yet; I am completely knocked down, laying flat, face pressed into the carpet. I am overcome with emotion. It is not the same power that CEO’s think they have over their employees, or the power that comes with that status of our celebrities. It is not the same power that the President of the United States has. It is far more powerful. This kind of power moved mountains, better yet, created man from dust. This kind of power healed the sick and gave sight to the blind. This kind of power stood up for a prostitute that was about to be stoned to death. This kind of power could have come down from the cross and made everyone who mocked Him eat their words. But this kind of power humbly hung there, dying for you and for me. This kind of power is life giving, grace filled, merciful, beautiful, humble, just and righteous. And this kind of power is on our side.

So the next time you feel unworthy, you stand up, head held high, feet firmly planted on the ground created by your One and Only Savior and you remember that He fulfills us.

The next time you feel like you are surrounded by cold, ungraceful, mean spirited and plain old nasty people, you remember that your Sweet Jesus hung on a cross and died as those very people stood there and mocked Him. He will have the last word. He will win this chess game we call life. He will overcome and He will stand firm. And those people, they will not. It might seem like they are winning. It may feel like they own you. It may feel like there is no way out. But the truth is. He is Jesus. The power of His name makes the mountain tremble. And He loves you.