Psalms 139: 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and
wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. (NIV)
As I
began writing my latest book, “Love:
Begins at the Heart of God,” it allowed me to dig deep into the true
meaning of having a relationship with God. It helped me to understand why I had
made so many mistakes in my own past when it came to relationships. See, last
month, when I informed you, my readers, that I would be blogging every Friday
on an upcoming book, “The Weight of Weight” for the next 6 months, I had no
idea that I would actually be tying two books into one. What I mean is that in
dealing with my own weight issues, I would also have to deal with my
relationship with God.
You may
ask, what do I mean? Okay, many people look at those struggling with their
weight as just simply having the lack of will power. Well, it is not that
simple. I have struggled with my weight for years going up and down the scale…mostly
up. What I have realized is that I never truly felt good about myself. I never
felt that I deserved to be loved. I never truly felt loved. Therefore, because
I didn’t love myself, I couldn’t see the value in myself; it grew roots on the
inside and out. Yes, I would lose the weight, but never dealt with the issues
that were causing me to gain it to begin with. I basically put a bandage over
an open wound, which never healed. As a result, I would gain the weight back.
Many
would tell me, “Oh, you’re so pretty, you are beautiful…” However, if you don’t
feel it on the inside, it doesn’t matter what people say about the outside. You’re
looking at a totally different mirror than they are. They are seeing Alice in
Wonderland and you are inwardly at the witch’s castle. Therefore, their view is not your reality. It’s as
if they are reading a 1994 newspaper when you’re in 2014. It’s outdated, out of
print, and old news.
So when
I began writing my latest book, it allowed me to understand more clearly as to
how God views us. Many of us look at God as if He is just waiting to hammer us down
at the slightest mistake. We judge ourselves in the same manner. We are
definitely our harshest critics. We ask God to forgive us for our sins and yet,
it doesn’t seem like it should be that simple. It seems like there has to be
something more to it than that. It seems like we have to work for it. I have
felt this same thing when it comes to love. I must do my part to receive it. I
must not just accept it. There must be something more to it and I must earn it.
After all, no one will love the real me. I am underserving of something so
easy. There must be some strings attached. With this ideology, I have allowed
people to mistreat and use me. Most of all, I accepted it and it became a part
of how I viewed myself.
However,
that is not the way that God works. God doesn’t require us to work for His
love. He loved us before we even knew what love meant. Many of us do not know
how to love because we never understood it from the One who created it. The
mindsets of many, who “think” they know what love is, really don’t have a clue.
Therefore, how can you love others when you don’t even know how to love
yourself? God is the essence of love
and when we truly accept Him, we will understand what love is. A healthy
relationship must begin with God. Love
must begin with Him, then He will teach us how to love ourselves and transfer
that love onto others.
Before
anyone gets involved in a relationship, they first need to have one with God.
God will teach you how to love because He
is Love. He will teach you how to love yourself because He created you in His
image. If you hate yourself, you are hating His creation and therefore, you don’t
truly love Him. So as I was writing my latest book, it allowed me to open my
eyes up to the Creator’s love for me and how much He understood me. I had to
learn about the love of God before I could learn to love myself or a future
spouse. Love isn’t earned; love is freely given. Love doesn’t hurt; love heals.
Love doesn’t always take, but love shares generously. Love is not about self,
but what can be done for someone else. Love is a Godly choice, it is not an
evil demand. Love builds you up and not tear you down. Love is self-sacrificing
and not self-inflation. Love is…God.
As I
try to work on my outside, I am also allowing God to help me on the inside. If
I don’t deal with the inner, it will once again spill over onto the outward. I’m
not trying to be a size resulting in a single digit. I am just trying to be the
best me. The best me means accepting the love of God; therefore, I can love
myself and freely accept it from others. “Love” is what I have been missing in
my life, but it begins at the heart of God. I invite you to get my new book, “Love:
Begins at the Heart of God” by K L Rich available now on Amazon.com in eBook
version or in printed version on Amazon January 14, 2014. May God bless you and
keep you! Have a great weekend and I will see you again for Monday’s blog. You
may visit my website at www.klrich.com and
like me on Facebook at K L Rich Spoken Word Corner.
