Dearest Reader and Friend,
I want to speak to you personally about being uniquely you; about loving and savoring yourself. That may sound conceited to some ears, but there’s nothing wrong with loving and enjoying yourself.
In fact, it is holy. Jesus loves and savors you. You are pleasing to Him. You are so very precious in His sight…inside and outside. He loves you. He created you. He fashioned and formed you uniquely in your mother’s womb, and He carefully and skillfully (probably with a huge smile on His face and excitement in His heart) wove a life for you full of grace and hope using the golden thread of Heaven, and the very pleasure of His heart.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV says: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
You are so priceless and precious to Him. There are things—gifts and talents that He’s put in you that nobody else has. Yes, if you’re a painter you will meet other painters, but the version of the talent of painting that you have is unique to you, and it is God-breathed.
I’ve had the bittersweet pleasure of meeting a lot of people in life who are insecure in some way, shape, or form. There’s an “epidemic of insecurity in our society” as Joyce Meyer likes to say. It’s insecurity with a root of fear that sprouts all kinds of ugly branches, like comparison, which leads to jealousy and hatred. This fear comes from not knowing yourself in Abba Father. It comes from a lack of receiving His healing love, for perfect love casts out all fear.
We need to understand and value ourselves, to take the time to connect with our souls and truly see with all our heart the beauty of our spirit and outward design.
There’s a beauty, a radiance within you that is entirely unique to you. This radiance, beauty, and strength is the way God portrays Himself through your soul. You are a one-time masterpiece, and your reaction to His love cannot be copied by anyone else. You are unique, and He wants to love you uniquely. He wants to hold you uniquely. He wants to encourage you uniquely. He wants to have a relationship with you uniquely.
In the same way that no two fingerprints are the same, nobody is like you in all the earth. Listen to the wise words of John Mason in his book title: You Were Born an Original, Don’t Die a Copy. You are the “lily among thorns,” and the “apple tree among the trees of the wood.” God sees you as the “chief among ten thousand!” Indeed, in His eyes you are entirely perfect for Him.
May you see yourself through His washing, through His cleansing eyes of love, through His ecstatic delight. He calls you mighty, He calls you strong, He calls you tender, He calls you lovely. You are called loved. Please friend, whatever you do, don’t wrongfully compare yourself with others, or even with yourself, for the Bible calls this foolish.
Go to Abba, and ask Him what He thinks of you, and then open the Word and let Him minister to your deepest needs.
~This sample devotional was taken from my book Visions of Celestial Love. You can purchase a physical or ebook copy by clicking here.
