#TuesdayTruth Romans 3:22-24

“This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

As much as I would like to, I am not a person who can easily still myself to hear God’s voice. Unfortunately, I have a busy mind: it starts running from the moment I wake up and basically goes until the moment I close my eyes to sleep at night, unless I consciously take time to be quiet, to still my mind, and listen for God.

One of the most vivid moments that I am certain I heard the Father’s voice was one day when I was running. Very often, when I run, I talk to God. It gives me time and space to focus in on Him and not be distracted with so many other things that can take my time and attention. On one particular run, I was feeling a lot of feelings that I now know have nothing to do with my identity in Him- anxiety, shame, fear, worry, and just kind of down in general. I was wrestling with all of this in my mind as I ran along my route, and I quite plainly asked God, “Why would you even want me?” And I know, with all that is in me, that He answered, “Because you are my daughter.” This, of course, brought me to tears, but being myself (ever the “questioner”), I responded, “But I am not worthy. I’m a mess.” (As if the all-knowing, all-powerful God did not know exactly who He was talking to, I had to remind him! LOL) Again, as much as I know that I am typing these words for you to read, I know the response I heard from Him, “And I love you anyways.”

Wow. Talk about a mic drop.

The reality of our situation: We are ALL unworthy. We have ALL sinned. There is nothing, no gesture, no list of check boxes, no “works” that we can do to “earn” our salvation. We have ALL fallen short. It does not matter in what manner, or how many times, I have fallen short. The simple truth is that left on my own, to my own “devices”, I have no hope of earning the Father’s love.

The beautiful GOOD NEWS of the Bible: He never meant for me to try to earn salvation! It is a FREE GIFT, given by His good grace. So despite all of my mess, my sin, my downfalls, my shame, despite all of it (which, by the way, He knows inside and out, from top to bottom)…God has extended a hand, a literal lifeline and He has offered me this most beautiful and otherwise unattainable gift. I am FREELY justified. I am redeemed. I am His.

When I have those “down days”, when I feel so unworthy of the Father’s love, or when I wonder just how or just why would the Creator of this world want me…I read verses like the ones above that stir me to my core. I am comforted by this immense GIFT, that is freely offered to every single one of us.

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for the free gift of salvation, despite all of my past downfalls. Thank you for not seeing the person who I was before I knew my identity in you. Thank you for your grace and thank you for seeing me as your daughter. Thank you for my new, true identity, in You.

We love you Father, Amen.