Because You're You

My brother and I weren't always "buddy-buddy" growing up. For the most part we had a pretty good relationship, but as the little sister I'm sure I tended to get on his nerves, and I know I was a terrible tattletale. We definitely had periods of time where we didn't get along so well. I remember asking him once why he didn't like me, and he told me, "Because you're you." You can't blame a 12 year old boy too much for making a quip like that to his annoying sister, and now we are very close (we even lived together for a while during our college years). Although I can joke about it now, that comment stuck with me for quite a while.

We so desperately look for love and approval, don't we? From siblings, parents, boyfriends, husbands, friends, or wherever we can get it. Often feeling like we have to earn it, we have to be something or do something worthy of it. But the truth is we don't have to look very far, that love is there all along for us, and that it exceeds any earthly love we could find.

Psalm 36:7 How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of Your wings.

Psalm 136:26 Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.

Lamentations 3:22 Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail.

Zephaniah 3:17 The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.

1 John 4:16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

Psalm 86:15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ephesians 2:4-5 But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved.

Ephesians 3:16-19 I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, 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.

The world tells us we're not good enough, we're not pretty enough, skinny enough, talented enough, smart enough, worthy enough.

But our Father tells us, "I love you my child, because I am good, because I am God, and because I made you. I love you simply because you're you."

Emily