I know for some of us truth is a word that brings out the explorer in us. It’s something to be discovered and uncovered. For others, even just hearing or reading the word “truth” bubbles up fear, uncertainty, and a mental wall ready to crash down and protect us.
There was a time when my marriage was breaking, and I “needed” to know the truth. It would help me heal and give me closure. Knowing the truth would make me understand and understanding would fix the destruction in my heart and life. It didn’t. From then until now I have learned that not all truth is worth seeking. Not all truth needs to be known. The truth that was worth seeking, that fixed the destruction, was who God is and how He loves me. For all of my life, I believed that God loved others oh so much and I…I was an afterthought. So, I poured it all and then some into being a daughter, mother, wife, and friend. But the second my marriage broke, so did that truth. The one people-pleasers believe so well: We are only loved because of what we do. If our actions fall short, so does the love. If we stop, then our people will no longer love us; because people-pleasers tend to believe we are not loveable. We can work our whole lives giving and it’s never going to be enough because God is the only “enough”.
My favorite verse God gave to me when I was a teenager, during a time where I really needed Him to speak, was this:
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
John 3:16 NIV
He knew then that I needed that verse like an anthem. He brought me back to it yet again. Because I never really grasped that He has seen into the depths of my heart, all the dark places, and He loved me still. To be honest it’s something I must choose to walk in. As I pull back more of the curtain on who God is and the “me” He has for me, I’m realizing that all of the sources in which I used to seek after love other than God Himself, are now the places that I can pour love into because I finally believe that I am truly loved by Him. You see, in finding His peace, you can more readily love from your heart and His. In a world where the truth is subjective, our God’s truth is everlasting and so faceted, He does not change like shifting shadows. His word and heart are where we can all find the truth without fear, it’s where seeking it brings healing and peace.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
James 1:17 NIV
We want to thank Lauran Lancaster for sharing this post.
Women's Ministry 