How do we Live Loved?

I've been on a Lysa TerKeurst kick, lately.

Her books have been like a cool glass of water for my parched soul, so full of words and affirmations I've been desperately craving.

I started "Uninvited" and by the second chapter, she started talking about this concept of "Living Loved."

The idea of living loved means doing everything from a place of deep security, knowing that you are loved and valued. It sounds kind of Hallmark-y at first glance, but the more I read, the more I began to question, "Am I functioning from a place of love, or from a fear of failure?"

Living loved doesn't mean that you are highly confident person; it just means you are sure of Whose you are. On the flip side, when we live with a fear of failure, we are so focused on keeping our eyes on the path before us, that we can't see the forest for the trees. It's much easier to forget who is holding us up with His mighty right hand when we're operating from a place of fear.

So often in my life, I operate from a place of fear. Fear that I'm not good enough. Fear that I'm not liked or understood. Fear that I am not pretty enough, so therefore not worthy. Fear that if others see me struggle, then I'll be considered less-than. This fear prevents me from recognizing truth; it clouds my judgment, contributes to my anxiety, and keeps me focused inward instead of outward.

I wonder how many of us today are trapped in the same bondage to fear, but are hungry for peace that comes from living loved. What would you do if you believed you were loved? It's one thing to claim we KNOW something to be true -- it's entirely different to truly, really BELIEVE it to be true. You may have heard your whole life that God loves you, but do you believe it?

So often, I prioritize the opinions of other flawed, fallible human beings over the opinion of God. Our Lord is playful, accepting, loving, and gracious. He doesn't just like us -- He thinks we're to die for! And yet we spend so much time and energy focusing on being accepted by people we wouldn't even hang out with on the weekends given the opportunity!

Where does this leave us, then? How do we reconcile what we feel with what we know?

Because I can promise you this: I want to be free of the lie that pleasing others will make me whole. I want to believe, not just know, that Jesus loves me and that no matter what, I am loved. I want to believe that I am OK by simply being who I am; by inhabiting space, here, on this swirling ball in the middle of the galaxy, I am OK because I am loved by the Prince of Peace.

Living loved is something I am (obviously) still working through, but this is what I'm doing to help me step into that reality every day:

1. If what I believe about myself doesn't line up with what Jesus says about me, then it isn't true. I am loved, full-stop. Not tolerated, not endured, not adequate -- LOVED. "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)

2. I can experience healing from emotional and mental pain through the Cross. The scars I bear are now behind the blood of Christ, who declared me righteous by submitting to the cross. “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5).

3. I am strong enough to accept the way I am, because Jesus carries the weight of this world with me, and doesn't ask me to try to prove myself to Him. “God arms me with strength, and he makes my way perfect.” (Psalm 18:32).

4. Rejection doesn't get the final say-so in my identity. “Do not fear. I have redeemed you. I have summoned you. You are mine” (Isaiah 43:1).

5. Fear can be felt for a moment, so long as I am replacing it with truth. “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7).

I think I'll always worry about what other people think of me. I will always crave acceptance, desire to be well-known and well-liked. But I am starting to trust and believe that the Lord really means what He says; I am enough the way I am -- I can step into a life fully loved and clothed in loved, because He tells me this.