Dear Ones,
Hope you have a blessed Day! Today I hope to do food prep and finish my work around the apartment so I can get into the new book that came yesterday. I finished reading James Robison’s book, Living Amazed, and you will receive a devotional on it in a couple days as it is a powerful book!
Devotions from Judy’s heart
How do we live from our true selves and not waste energy trying to be worthy of being loved by doing all the right things? We want to believe God delights in us, but have a hard time experiencing that reality. Adam and Eve had such a wonderful start: they were open and real with each other and God, and didn’t live with shame or fear, but were content. Their big mistake was choosing to be like God, becoming mistrustful of God and centered on self. Only God can restore us as He did with Adam and Eve, and help us live from our true self. Like David Benner writes, “We do not find our true self by seeking it. Rather we find it by seeking God.”

Who we really are is not someone we create, but the one God created. Some try to become like the person they think their parents want them to be, and it may not be like God’s blueprint at all. Trying to be like that takes a lot of energy, and soon we give up and know it doesn’t befit us. It will take trust in God if we are going to open ourselves up to His love, become who He created us to be, and give and receive love from others. And isn’t that we all long for in the depth of our hearts?

Living from our true self is a life of faith, as we believe God has our best in store. Our life will express our authentic self and be real and true when we surrender to God’s plan for us. It is not something we earn, but we discover it as we are receptive to Him. It results that we are open to others as well, and God’s love will pour out of us to them. When we live in freedom, it creates freedom for others to open up about their wounds and fears. One night, a person who recently lost her loved one was walking by me, and I reached out and hugged her and told her we were praying for her. I don’t think she knows the Lord yet, but she hugged me in return and thanked me and said she needed prayers…I have a feeling we will be sharing together again.

Let us all die to our false self and live as our true self, which is a gift that frees us and bears fruit.

Challenge for today: Trust God and receive His love, that your true self may come forth and blossom.
Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy