Reflections on "Good Enough"

Are we held captive by the lie that we're not good enough because we've never defined the term "good enough"? "Good enough" is such a vague and elusive idea. Or is perfection our ideal, our idea of "good enough"? Then no wonder this lie holds us captive! We take one step toward this ideal; it backs two steps away. Perfection is unattainable, but we subconsciously convince ourselves that it is possible. When we reach for this ideal that we think is firm, we're grasping vapor, a cloud that slowly drifts away. For who can be perfect? After all, who determines what's "good enough"? When will we have arrived?
    Pursuing "good enough" is not worth it if it drains the life from our souls, removes the health from our bodies, drips blood from our skin, steals the joy from our hearts.
    We are good enough in the eyes of our Creator, the only One whose view of us matters. When God created us, He didn't say, "We'll see how she does" or "Guess he'll have to do." NO! We are created in the image of GOD, the beautiful and perfect One. When He made us, He said, "It is VERY GOOD"! Not just "good enough"--VERY GOOD!!!
    Let's take comfort in that, instead of constantly striving after our own undefined and unattainable standard of "good enough." You are not what you do. You are not how you perform. You are who you are. You are VERY GOOD!!!

Nov. 24, 2010 

Little Girl

Precious baby girl

So innocent, naïve

As I look into your eyes

I see a heart that’s pure

For now you are protected

From anything that hurts

I’d hold you in my arms forever

If I only could          

I’d shield your eyes from seeing evil 

Keep your mind from turmoil

Protect your heart from feeling pain

                              

Before too long you’ll learn to talk

Before too long you’ll learn to walk

You will learn and grow

Eyes slowly opening to the world

Little girl, just four years old

You saw them fight

You don’t understand

I promise you

It’s not your fault

Still you are left

With wounds which leave

A lasting scar

As lies are branded

On your heart

Little girl

Who’s growing up

You’ll make mistakes that you’ll regret

You’ll think you’ve lost your innocence

Your present wrapped up in your past

You’d give anything to take it back

But now you carry so much shame

You cannot bear all this pain

You’d like to cast it all away

But little girl, do not forget

That you are loved

By your Heavenly Father

He has carried you

Since you were born

He will carry all your pain

He will remove all of your shame

His voice speaks louder than the lies

He’ll wipe away the tears you cry

For he’s the One who makes you pure

And holds your heart until the end

Fight for Life

With every struggle that I face

With every hurt and all this pain

I wonder at the reason

This life has always been so hard

The difficulty never leaves

Why should I even try to fight?

For all I want is to escape

To hide from chaos, pain and fear

To feel alive and to find joy

To rest and live and breathe

I wonder if the struggle

Will be worth it in the end

But giving up does not bring life

And giving in does not dull pain

Running away does not bring peace

So I will fight and never quit

I will press on until the end--

Until I have found life

The Prison of the Mind

For so long I’ve been a slave

A prisoner to lies

Truths and half-truths weave together

Occupy my mind

Thoughts of death and darkness

Secret fears and sin

And though you try to reach me

I cannot let you in

The darkness is intoxicating

I breathe in and out the lies

Though you may try to help me

I’ll tell you I am fine             

The lies are slowly killing me

But they are all I know

If I left them all behind

To where else would I go?

I cannot live like this forever

Something has to give

I need someone to help me

Someone to let me live

For too long I’ve been a slave

A prisoner to lies

I need someone to free me

From the prison of my mind

I need to feel the love

That I’ve been numb to all these years

To feel your arms around me

To cast away my fears

I need to see the purpose

The meaning in my life

To know that there is so much more

Than pain, darkness and lies

If I let you love me

Then maybe I could see

The truth behind the lies

Buried deep inside of me

Depression

The sun shines down

And warms her face

The cool breeze blows

Against her skin

She lies in the green grass

Stares up at the blue sky

Happiness—

This feeling is so foreign

She knows it is not here to stay

But she’ll enjoy it while it lasts

Uneasiness sets in

The sky turns gray

A cool fog dampens her skin

She knew this companion of darkness would return

God, please make it leave, she whispers

The familiar lies run through her mind.

You are worthless.

You will never be good enough.

You’re alone.

You might as well give up.

She tries to remember what’s true

But lies are all she can hear

They all expect her to be happy

To just wake up and be okay

They won’t believe that she is sick

And cannot heal herself

What they do not know

Is that just living, breathing

Is exhausting

Pretending to be happy

Just makes things worse

When she’s dying inside

Simultaneously hurt and numb

She’s afraid to keep on living

But giving up is not an option

So she’ll keep on fighting

Keep on breathing

And hope that someday

This darkness will fade

Someday she’ll find hope

And know the Truth

That sets her free

Alive

You’re alive

You are not dead

Your heart is beating

Lungs are breathing

You’re alive, you’re alive

You are thinking, you are feeling

You’re alive, you’re alive

The pain is real      

And it is strong

But hope is real

And it is stronger

You’re alive, you’re alive

So go outside

And smell the flowers

Hear the wind blow in the trees

Listen to the birds that sing

Feel the sun upon your face

You’re alive, you’re alive

The God who’s made creation good

Has declared you “very good”

You’re alive, you’re alive

You are loved and you are worthy

Precious child of the King

You are clean and you’re forgiven

Brought from darkness into light

And in Him you find your healing

You’re alive, you’re alive

The Problem with Self-Punishment

“Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” Hebrews 9:27-28

                                   

Many people all over the world, from various religions, hurt themselves physically to try to please their gods. But when is the self-punishment enough? There’s never any assurance of salvation.

Many people hurt themselves for various reasons—by cutting, or in other ways. There are many reasons people do this, but a common reason is self-punishment. We know that sin cannot go unpunished. It cannot simply be excused. Blood must be shed. Even Hebrews 9:22 says, “And without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” The problem comes in when we think it’s our own blood that needs to be shed. If we hurt or punish ourselves every time we sin, does that really take away our sin? No, we’ll probably sin again pretty soon! And how will we know when we’ve suffered enough, hurt ourselves enough? It can never be enough!

In the Old Testament, God instructed the Jews to sacrifice animals to “pay” for their sins. But these animals could not take the people’s sin away permanently. The people kept sinning, so they kept having to offer sacrifices every year. But God sent his perfect Son, Jesus into the world to die in our place, for our sins. He bled and died, and after three days, he rose to life. His blood was enough to cover all our sins, past, present and future. He forgives us for everything we have done wrong. Because He died once, we have no need to punish ourselves again and again and again. Jesus takes away our sin completely, forever, and self-punishment cannot. We need to simply accept Jesus’ death in our place and his forgiveness, and thank him for it.

So maybe you’re thinking, “Okay, but I don’t self-injure. How does this relate to me?” Well, when you sin, do you accept Jesus’ forgiveness, or do you continue to beat yourself up with guilt and shame? Do you place your identity in the mistakes you’ve made? Do you think you’re a failure and get discouraged about how many times you’ve messed up in the same way? We are not saved from our sins by the good works we do, but by what Jesus did for us. Jesus did the work by taking our punishment on himself. It is our choice whether we will accept his gift to us.