You deserve to be happy

If anyone has been checking, they have obviously noticed that my blogging has been silent for quite a while. Well, there really isn’t an excuse other than my life has taken a drastic turn and I find myself facing life from a different perspective. I once thought I knew how my life would turn out, but some how it takes turns that you never would have thought or imagined. Fortunately, I am still alive and have found solace in family and friends. So my goal is to take the blogging mantle back up and express myself through my words and feelings once again.

Today’s blog reflects a conversation I had recently with a friend. My friend, like me has been through some hard and painful life experiences. Like me, some of my friend’s pain has been at the hands of other while some of the pain has been as a result of their own actions. As I talked with my friend they said something that took me by surprise yet reminded me of some of my own thoughts in the past. My friend was sharing some of their pain when they said “maybe I don’t deserve to be happy”. It brought me back to many of my own self limiting thoughts and the shame that I felt in the past (I wish I could say I never have them any more.) I assured my friend that God was not eternally mad at them and that their past didn’t have to dictate their future. Yes we do things that end up hurting people and creating pain but if those actions ended our future then who among us would have a future. It reminds me of the woman caught in adultery and then brought to Jesus. All of the religious leaders of the day were ready to condemn the woman (where was the man by the way?)and stone her to death. They brought her to Jesus first to test him on this seeming no brainer. They said to him in John 8 “"Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do you say?" Jesus didn’t answer them at first but bent down to write in the dirt. But the leaders wanted to keep pressing for and answer But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." If you know the story, you know that the leaders one by one dropped their stones and walked away. Jesus simple response to the woman was I do not condemn you, go and sin no more. All of us have fallen prey to sin and find ourselves guilty before God. None of us are good enough on our own, all of us, if we are judged by this standard, do not deserve to enjoy life or be happy. But that’s not the good news. The good news is that we are not condemned, we are loved. We are loved more that we will ever know, we are loved without doing a thing.

If you are reading this and you too have felt shamed, and guilty for the wrong that you have done and believe that you don’t deserve to be happy again. Let me assure you of the words of our Father, you are loved with an everlasting love.

I came across this video clip a long time ago but its words are so true. Please take the next 6 minutes and allow its words to sink into your heart. Go and celebrate the love the Father has for you.

Peace
Ralph