Beloved ♥
A sweet friend, Shana, gifted me with this tee for my birthday last week, knowing its message has a special place in my heart. My entire life, until 5 or 6 years ago, I could look you in the eye and confidently tell you how much God loves you... but I couldn't look in the mirror and confidently tell myself the same thing Many many times I looked out into an audience and thought, "You love them SO much!" I could *feel* His heart for them and it was beautiful and full of love. But I did not feel that deep love toward me personally. I also could not confidently tell Him that I loved Him. I felt like I loved Him in a general sense—I loved His goodness, His kindness, even His justice and rebuke—but I really struggled to sing the songs that told of my great love for Him or His great love for me. Something just felt off enough that it didn't feel true. I can't and won't lie, especially to the One who knows all my thoughts before they're even coherent! (Psalm 139...