Treasuring YOU- An Indescribable Gift

Mirror Mirror

On the Wall

Who's the loveliest 

of them all?

What will I do 

With What I See?

 I must believe in myself

I must treasure Me.

-SAC

It's the most wonderful time of the year! I can admit that I didn't always feel that way. Even as a teenager who was dating randoms as Pastor Heather Lindsey would call them. I could count on the Random who broke up around Christmas and Valentine's day. I could count on the Random that had a boo on the side. And the Random that was married (to my terrified surprise!) and had to celebrate the Holidays with his 'real' family. I am so very glad that at 18, I chose to rededicate my life and stop the relationship roller coaster. I kissed dating GOOD.BYE. Yes, at the age of 18, when everyone says, "Girl, you're in college, and it's time to let loose and explore!" I did just the opposite. I came to college a buck wild freshman at 17. But a brush with death, and shortly after, an outside the 4 walls encounter with GOD the Father WRECKED ME. Completely. I knew what kind of off-the-chain- party girl I had been. And I wanted something completely different. I began to get into the Word. I devoured it. I didn't want to be the girl everyone used to know. 

I came upon probably one of my favorite Women in the Bible. Ruth. I figured she had to be important because very few books of the Bible are named after women. It was only 4 chapters, so I dug in. WRECKED MY WORLD. Through the book of Ruth, I learned lessons that have shaped me to this day.
For some of those lessons click here  http://legsclosedmindopen.blogspot.com/2011/09/unexpected-relationship-coach.html

Through reading the Word and understanding the value that God placed on me as his child, as his daughter, as his precious one made in His image, I had to take stock of how I viewed myself. I had to make sure that my own world view and even the view that had been shaped by city, neighborhood, family, friends, teachers, ideas like "nicknames" was really a reflection of Me. Whatever was not a reflection of how God saw me, I had to chuck, even if it made some people angry. I also had to throw out old ideas about myself, even if it made me uncomfortable.

The more I discovered who I was in Christ, the less I relied upon people to confirm, affirm, or validate what God had already declared about me. It's great that people can recognize who I am, but it's more important for Me to recognize it and appreciate who God says I am. I'm still discovering because God is still revealing who He is, and in turn, revealing more about me as His child.

Beloved, You are a treasure and an indescribable gift. The moment you take hold to that truth, you also have to understand that people may not agree with it. That you may have to renew your mind about yourself.

I want to encourage you to spend some time with the Lord this Holiday season. Steal away with him. Read the Book of Ruth, the ancestor of Jesus. I believe that God is going to speak powerfully to you as a Young Woman. Maybe you have a past, maybe you are a Widower and have given up on a second chance at love, maybe you have made some bad decisions and think that you have been disqualified or are not good enough for someone like Boaz. Maybe you feel like used goods, and God asking you to hang out with virgins is a really bad idea (my own story there :)?  God knows where we are, and what we need. Let him unlock the Gift of You. 

The Son of Man wants to take you out, dine with you, and present you with an eternal outlook. You really are a Treasure! I challenge you to discover just how much!