Ministry

Welcome back.

I’d like to ask you a few questions – and I apologise if this is a little too much on the deep and difficult side of things:

What do you think about yourself?

How often do you think about yourself?

When you think about yourself, do you think positively, negatively, or some combination of both?

Maybe you think about yourself a lot. Maybe you do a lot of self-reflection, around who you are, and what you are about. Maybe you don’t do a lot of self-reflection, but you would like to do more.

Your answers may reflect the following reality: Some people avoid thinking about themselves, because of the pain they are in. 

Some people, when they do think about themselves, criticize themselves, thinking of how they could have said or did something better. 

And some people think of themselves in a very unhealthy, negative light.

Yet this is in direct contrast to what God thought, what God said, when He made us, when He made you.

In Genesis, as the creation of the world is spoken of, it states that a range of things were ‘good’. Day, night, sun, moon, the stars, plants, animals, birds, sea and sky. God says all these things are good.

But when God creates people, A different term is used: very good.

Think of it like this: A beautiful sunset is good. But your friend, is very good.

A powerful waterfall is good, but you are very good.

We are discovering all sorts of amazing things about our universe. The universe is good.

We are discovering all sorts of amazing things about human beings. Human beings are very good.

This term we are talking about Restoration with ourselves. Restoration with ourselves, or the restoration of our self, is an inner work, that requires telling the truth, and also requires grace. The two go together.

The first truth we need to be restored is who we were created to be, and how God thinks of us. And that first truth is that when God created us, he created us very good.

You are very good.

The restoration of ourselves is a journey, meaning that isn’t all there is to share. But that is our starting point, That God created us very good.

May you live, knowing and embracing that reality.

God bless.

Chris Mann

Pastor