You Are Loved and Accepted
Adapted from Healing the Soul of a Woman
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.
One of the toughest battles many women fight inside themselves is the battle against rejection. They struggle, sometimes quite intensely, to believe they are loved and accepted. This can happen because of the way we see ourselves or the way we believe other people see us.
All kinds of people and situations can cause us to feel rejected or unworthy and have low self-esteem, but God wants us to know that He loves and accepts us unconditionally. The apostle Paul actually says that when we are in Christ, we are “holy and blameless” before God. That’s the way He sees us, so that’s the way we should see ourselves.
Sometimes, the people around us contribute to our low self-image by the way they treat us or speak to us. But God never, ever views us as anything but loved and accepted. Because we are in Christ, He sees us as flawless. This doesn’t mean we have never sinned or done anything wrong; it simply means that when we are in Christ and we repent of our sins, God forgives us completely and we are clean before Him.
The Old Testament woman Leah was not an attractive person, and her father, Laban, thought no one would ever want to marry her. So when Jacob arranged with Laban to work for him for seven years in exchange for marrying the woman he was in love with— Leah’s beautiful sister Rachel—Laban agreed. But on the wedding night, Laban sent Leah—instead of Rachel—to Jacob. There was no electricity in those days, so it was dark and Jacob didn’t know the difference. He was very upset the next morning when he discovered Laban had tricked him (Genesis 29:16–25).
Just imagine how rejected Leah must have felt, knowing that her own father thought the only way she would ever marry would be for him to deceive someone. In addition, she knew Jacob was in love with her sister, not with her. In the end, God blessed Leah with children much more than He blessed Rachel, but the damage to Leah’s self-esteem must have been severe.
Like Leah, you may feel rejected at times, but that is a lie from the enemy. The truth is that you are loved more than you can comprehend. Even when you think badly about yourself, God always thinks the best about you. The apostle Paul asked, If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31). Choose to believe today that God is for you, because He is! Choose to believe He accepts you fully, because He does! Choose to believe He loves you unconditionally and has a great plan for your life, because that’s the truth!
Prayer of the Day: Father, help me reject lies of rejection and see myself as You do—fully loved, accepted, and forgiven in Christ. Heal my heart and strengthen my confidence in Your truth, amen.
