Have you ever known someone who puts them self down constantly? The type of person that spends the bulk of their time talking about how worthless they are? I'm sure you do. We all know someone like that.
They usually talk about how dumb they are, how stupid they are, how fat they are, how worthless they are. If you're like me, as you sit there and listen to them, you get this feeling of uncomfortableness as you struggle with what to say. Clearly, these people need encouragement. They need someone to validate them and tell them that they are not what they think they are. Simply put, they want reassurance in who they are and what they look like.
Reassurance can be tricky though. Someone else has now decided your value for you, instead of you understanding your own inherit worth. Now you're at the whim of what someone else thinks.
Let me explain further- God created us. We are His. It is clear from the Bible that God intends for us to love ourselves as we love other people. This is hard, but can be easier if we look to what God says about us, rather than what the world or other people decide what is valuable.
The Bible says that we should love our neighbors as ourselves. God uses self love as the benchmark by which we should gauge our love of others. Easily, one can assume that the love that God intends for ourselves is not negative. If we constantly think and talk bad about ourselves, the love that will come from us, towards others, will be very unlovely indeed.
Which brings us to the big question- if we are to love others as ourselves, to what benefit is it continually put ourselves down? It is of no benefit. We have inherit value placed on us by God. If we degrade that, or are unsure of it, we devalue God himself by declaring that he has made something that is woefully inadequate. Now, we're not supposed to think of ourselves more highly than we should, but to have a sense of confident self value that has been placed on us by the one who created us in turn will help us to love other people.
Don't constantly search for reassurance. Seek out for God's approval. For his encouragement, for his affirmations. In the end it will empower you to live a more loving life and give you more confidence in your daily life.
be blessed
pastor matt
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