what I might tell you on a wednesday in march

 

You are loved. 

You just are. Your friends love you. You have family that love you. Where you find your tribe, you find love. But far more than that - and when those other loves fall short - is a CreatorGod that loves you. I could never outdo the words of a man named Paul who had his life utterly ruined for good by Jesus when he said, "I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." You're so loved. 

You are wanted. 

You won't feel it a lot of days, but you are. You're the reason for the smile that crosses someone's face or the motivation someone has to be a better man or woman today than they were yesterday. And even when this isn't the case, you're still so very wanted. An ancient song writer once said of God, "you knit me together in my mother's womb." I've never accidentally knitted anything; there is always want and intention behind it. He goes on to say, "how precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand." As much as a particular desire may consume you, do you think of anything that much? You - you are wanted. 

You have a voice people need to hear. 

It's unique. It's important. It's worthwhile. Your story and the voice you use to tell it deserve a birth and a raising. Don't waste a minute comparing it to anyone else's. That is theirs, this is yours. They both belong. Your voice is liberated; it only is not if you believe it not to be. Maybe your voice is in your writing or your art. Maybe you are a conversationalist. Maybe your voice is in how you decorate or accessorize. Maybe it's in the way you rock a budget sheet or sew a garment or take a photograph. Maybe the way you listen speaks volumes. From the measure you've been given, use your God-given voice. People need to hear it. It vibrates with the power of life and death. 

You're so much better at what you do than you think you are . . .

Nobody can rock what's in front of you to do like you can. You are uniquely designed and then placed where you can best be you: in this day. You're so much better at you than you think you are some days. You "are God's workmanship" - his poema, his poetry, his work of art - created to do good works that were prepared in advance just for you. I could never be you as well as you. You are so much better at it than I or anyone could ever be. 

. . . except sometimes you're not as good at what you do as you should be. 

You'll fumble and fail. You will drive this thing off in the ditch eventually. You'll coast along thinking you're owning the joint one day or on another day be the queen or king of the humble cats proudly deflecting appearances of pride. Then smack; your face meets the pavement. You're just simply going to get it wrong, but never lose hope on the chance to course-correct or recalculate a misstep. The correction and redirection won't feel good every time. You'll be tempted to take on shame. Friend, fight that temptation. Don't waste the strength in that spiral. Even this CreatorGod, when he corrects our ditch-diving, does it "as a father [disciplines] the son he delights in." So maybe you need some accountability, a friend or family to ask the hard questions to keep you on course. Maybe there are apologies to be made. Certainly, you'll need to wake up in the morning and put one foot in front of the other. But no shame - NEVER shame - because . . .

You are loved. 

That's what I might tell you on a Wednesday in March.