Loved As You Are

My, how we love to put on airs.  We love to appear better than we are, skinnier, more ambitious, more loving, more experienced and the list goes on.

The striving for bigger and better is at worst a cat chasing its tail.  And if, on the rare occasion the cat does finally catch his tail, what great disappointment.

When are we ever completely at rest with who we are, warts and all?  When do we embrace the unique individual we are and celebrate ourselves? 

The whole concept of being at rest with ourselves is a difficult one to embrace.  We are conditioned from early on to compare, contrast, view and review our lives by a scorecard that is idealistic and unreasonable at best. 

We wonder often if there is anyone who can appreciate us as we are.  Are we ever acceptable in and of ourselves?  If someone dared to get to know us at our core, would they hang around? 

In the middle of all of this madness and tail-chasing there is some tremendous hope, and it has it beginnings in this thought: 

“In order to grow in trust,

we must allow God to see us

and love us precisely as we are.”

~Brennan Manning

The words “see us and love us” jump out.  And those very words are the hallmark concepts on which God’s great love is based.

He doesn't expect perfection.

He actually expects us to be worse than we are.

He knows us and loves us anyway.

And he loves us precisely as we are.

That means he knows my stupid moments, my silly whims, my secret fantasies, and my most horrid thoughts. 

He knows all of that, yet He still loves me “precisely as I am”?

I sometimes have a hard time getting my mind around all of that.  Who am I that God could love me in my precise state of being.  I don’t even like myself in this state some times. 

The beginning phrase needs repeating.  It says this …

“In order to grow in trust”

The whole concept of God is based on trust.  We can’t see Him, touch Him, or hear an audible voice.  Our whole experiencing of God is based on faith. 

Faith is trust.  We reach the point of trusting God’s love for us precisely as we are. 

But I want to be Prince Charming.

I want to have a full head of hair.

I want to weigh 170 lbs.

I want to be a giant in Christian circles.

I want to boast of my Christian ethics and Christian disciplines.

I want to … but I can’t. 

What I am is this …

My back is hairy

I need to lose a few pounds

I sometimes sing flat

I don’t win every ping pong game

I eat chocolate when I’m not supposed to

And a dozen or more greater sins that I’m too chicken to mention.

I would dearly love to believe in a God like this – one who sees me as I am and loves me anyway.

And it is all wrapped up in that little word TRUST.

“In order to grow in trust,

we must allow God to see us

and love us precisely as we are.”

~Brennan Manning

This thought comes to mind.  God’s love is never based on performance. 

Remember this one? 

“While we were still sinners Christ died for us.”

~Romans 5:8

Remember the woman caught in adultery?  Her performance was less than admirable, yet Christ said “Neither do I condemn you.  Go and sin no more.”

The thief on the cross received pardon.  He was offered a place in paradise that very same day. 

These are incredibly lovely views of God loving us precisely as we are.  He loves us in the moment, and in every moment of our lives.

Have you ever seen any more marvelous views that represent amazing grace?

Perhaps it is time to step up our game – allow our trust to grow toward the one who loves us more than we deserve, and He loves us in whatever state of grace or disgrace in which we find ourselves.

And now, offer up your own prayer of thanksgiving to the one who loves you through every season of your life.

P Michael Biggs

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