1 Corinthians 8:1
In tears, she said to the counselor, "I really don't think that I'm worth anything. Sometime I just wish I was dead, but I'm too scared to take my own life." The counselor asked, "When did you first feel this way about yourself?" Through more tears, she said, "I've always felt this way about myself. I never thought my parents really loved me. I can't even remember them telling me that they loved me. I always felt like my life was an accident and they really didn't want me."
God made all of us and God is love (1 John 4:8,16). So, we could say that Love made us. God made us to love and be loved. God is life and His life is love. Someone may ask, "What is the purpose of life?" Jesus answered that question. "You shall love the Lord your God . . . and you shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Mark 12:30-31). To love God and others as yourself is the real purpose of life, as revealed in the two greatest commandments. Yet, we can't give what we haven't received. We love God and others as ourselves, because God first loved us (1 John 4:19).
How is your self-image? Genuine self-image does not come from how much we know nor how well we perform in life. Self-esteem is a gift from the One who loves us and made us. Self-help books on enhancing self-esteem are destined to fade and fail. "Love never fails" (1 Corinthians 13:8). This is the God-kind of love which is unconditional. It's not based upon performance in life. It's about the One who gave us life. Love edifies. That is to say, God builds us up. God's love for us is patient and kind (1 Corinthians 13:8). It never puffs us up but always builds us up.
Father, we receive Your unconditional love in Christ Jesus.
