Self Love and God
Philippians 4:8, Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, s.whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these thing.
“Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?” The evil queen in Snow White used this mirror to boost herself esteem. The queen knew that the mirror couldn’t lie, that it always had to tell the truth. It wasn’t until one day that the queen asked the mirror for validation, that the mirror (who could never speak contrary to the truth) told the queen Snow White, was now fairer than she was. The queen was devastated, she didn’t want anyone to more fair than she was. She had an unhealthy self-love that was conceited, prideful and arrogant. That was not the natural self-love that comes from God.
The bible doesn’t say a lot about how to love ourselves. However there are some biblical truths, that help us understand that God is love, and if we are made in his image (Genesis 1:27) then the thoughts toward ourselves have to be good, because God is good (2 Cor 5:17, John 1:12 and Ephesians 1:6). However for most of us our image of ourselves, much like the queen has been developed based on the environments we have lived in, our past experiences and the lack of seeing ourselves how God sees us. God sees that we are good, even when we have acted bad, we just have allowed ourselves to live less than what God sees. I remember one day when I was struggling with self-esteem and God’s love for me I was sitting in the mirror picking myself apart. I started talking about the freckles on my nose, the uneven spots in my teeth, how my ears are a little uneven, how I needed to lose about 10-15 pounds. I was going on and on, when I felt like I heard the still small voice turn into a yell. Stop!! That is not my view of you, and if you pick a part my creation, what you are saying is “I am not good.” I started to turn around and see who was in the bathroom with me. I got quiet and God reminded me to think His thoughts about me.
He said, “LaKisha if it isn’t true, honest, just, pure, lovely or of good report, those thoughts aren’t coming from me, those thoughts are coming from a distorted view. My love for you isn’t based on your deeds or actions, my love for you comes from when I created you long ago, and you have not failed me.” I began to cry and feel release at the same time. God loved me, so it was ok for me to love me. It wasn’t about what I saw in the mirror it was about God’s view of me. The evil queen had trusted the mirror to validate her, much like we do people. God instructed me to go find EVERY scripture that said how He felt about me; it was contrary to what I had believed. Now it’s time for you to go and find God’s view of you. It’s not based on the mirror on the wall; it’s based on His belief in you.
Prayer: Father thank you for your love and belief in me. I receive your forgiveness, I receive your love, I receive your peace, I receive your view of me and the vision for my life. Thank you for doing a new thing in me so that I can receive the love you have for me. In Jesus Name. Amen
Loving God and Loving Myself,
LMJ
