What are mere mortals that you should think about them? Psalm 8:4a
God’s concerned for the entire human race. Yet, remarkably, each of us can know and enjoy personal friendship with God. Only God has this capacity to include everyone and be intimately involved with each of us.
Whilst God is all sufficient without need of our companionship, God chooses to engage with us. This came at the cost of redemption through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. The psalmist’s question is worth asking ourselves. God appears to have a higher regard for human welfare than we do, both for ourselves and our neighbours.
Every human bears God’s image regardless of economics, ethnicity or gender. God sets the bar very high. So how can we love others less than this? In a world of suffering I’m invited to take seriously God’s love for all humanity. I may not be able to change everyone’s world everywhere, yet I can have a positive impact in someone’s life somewhere.
This starts with the way I view and treat myself. I cannot love anyone else unless I respect and love myself. Failure here will mean I project my poor self image onto others and assume the worst of them. I won’t find the best in them because I’m blinded to the best in me.
Being loved enables me to feel appreciated and valued. Medics note that babies starved of ‘contact comfort’, being held and touched, experience psychological damage.
So we must both marvel at God’s love and establish our daily routine of ‘comfort contact’. We should offer just such a contact point. Ensure you maintain your ‘comfort contact’ as a child of God.
Something to Consider: Do I love and accept myself entirely, just as God loves and accepts me?
A Prayer to Make: ‘Lord, thank You for loving and accepting me. I choose to love myself and want to share that love with others.’
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Used with Permission
