When You Feel Unworthy of God’s Love

When you feel unworthy of God’s love, think about this:

Not all feelings can be trusted. They come and go as the wind blows. They can lead you astray. Feelings are not your true north.

God will never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). He has compelled himself to obey His own Word because God never breaks His promises. God’s Word says He will never leave you, so He won’t.

God’s love is not based on your own nature or ability or goodness—it’s based on His. God is a God who abides, so believe it.

God loved you as a sinner (Romans 5:8). He’ll love you if you sin today. He’ll love you if you sin tomorrow. Your sin does not determine if God loves you or not. God’s love is a fact that resides apart from the fact of your sin. Your sin does not disqualify you for God’s love.

God loved you first (1 John 4:19).

So preach the love of God to yourself.
Receive it while God is near.
Because He is.

Only you can make yourself feel unworthy of God’s love. God’s love is a primary reality, standing apart from space and time, circumstance and consequence, people and places. God’s love is essential—remember He loved you first. First in chronology, first in importance.

You feel unworthy because you want to. Not because you are. Not because of what they did to you. Not because of what you did. And certainly not because of what God thinks of you.

You are worthy of His love. He delights in you and rejoices over you with singing (Zephaniah 3:17). Yes, God’s delight erupts over you in great choruses of joy. Mere words cannot release the thoughts and feelings He has for you. God must sing over you.

You are not beyond His love. How can you be? A love that is higher than high, deeper than deep, wider than wide? Love that searches you out and hems you in and sees your most ugly, most unlovely moments? Love that sees you. God’s love was released for moments such as these, for a person such as you.

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it (1 John 1:15). Nothing can put out the light of God’s love. Want proof? For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son (John 3:16), and that Son is alive today.

So do this today:

Sit down in a quiet place. Hold your hand over your heart. Take a breath, exhale, and say,

“God, you love me.”

Say it again.

“God, you love me.”

And again.

“God, you love me.”

Say it until you believe it. Say it until you experience it. Some things are best experienced. And when you do, it's the best.

The only thing standing in front of God's love is you, so get out of the way.