On Feeling Worthy

It's been said that looks are deceiving. I was riding and running the battlefields of Gettysburg yesterday in the oppresive heat and humidity of South Central PA and while I probably looked OK on the outside I was suffering on the inside. The elements were taking a toll....there's something to be said for acclimation and clearly I was not yet acclimated to my new environment, so used to the relatively cooler and less humid training conditions in the mountains of Asheville. I finished the workout and soon realized that I was pretty dehydrated, and my core body temperature was continuing to rise despite the fact that I had stopped training. It took a few hours and lots of water and Gatorade to get eveything back to "normal".

Most people look OK on the outside but on the inside, they're suffering. They have, over time, become defined by their wounds, wounds which eventually make them become someone they're not.When I noticed what was happening on the inside yesterday, it was vital that I stopped to address my physical needs. Far too often we learn to adapt (emotionally) and accept the wounds as part of who we are and invariably we become a far lesser, reduced, and compromised version of whom God intended us to be. We feel less than worthy. We feel less than lovable. We sometimes lose that smile, that passion, that zest, and that capacity to love which once defined and drove us. We have allowed others to determine our worthiness and we've somehow become convinced that we are undeserving of love and unconditional acceptance.

Emotional wounds are a reality of life. Nobody gets through unscathed. But remaining damaged and scathed is a conscious choice, carrying the constant reminders of what was done to us and allowing our history to rob us of a future filled with joy and possibility was never part of His plan for our lives. God reminds us in Isaiah 43:4 that we are "precious in His sight, that we are honored and He loves us" Knowing that, why would we continue to allow ourselves to be defined as less than worthy by anyone else? Why wouldn't we stop, assess the damages, and reconcile with our past so that the days ahead can be lived out loud with uncompromising passion and love? We belong to a God who not only believes we are worthy but loves us even when we are not lovable, and even with our imperfections. We are worthy. Believe. And then move forward in such a way that people come to see the Light again in you.