NorthStar Community Daily Devotional

June 20 - Eavesdropping

Scripture focus: Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn't, and doesn't, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn't been so weak, we wouldn't have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him. Romans 5:6-8 (The Message)

I was sitting in the stands at a recent high school sporting event. It was cold and we were losing by a lot. After traveling for hours to watch this debacle, I was relieved when a distraction presented itself. A small group of parents from the opposing team were in the middle of a heated discussion about one of their children's recent diagnosis of "low self-esteem." A variety of opinions were expressed about this "condition" and a majority agreed that this child needed some encouragement and positive feedback.

It dawned on me that the child they were discussing was actually playing on the field. He spent most of his time in the penalty box. Every time he wacked or pushed or slashed one of our players, these folks cheered him on, "It's okay son, you've got heart! Shake it off, those refs don't know what they're doing! We know you didn't mean to kick that kid laying on the ground, he just got in your way."

I admit that it is hard to keep our senses about us when we're cheering for our kids in a sports event. But as I sat there shivering in my long johns and swathed in a blanket, I couldn't help thinking about Romans 5 – what a far better cry of encouragement than simply yelling, "Whack'em!"

Low self-esteem your problem? Is it brought on by a long history of misbehaving, under-achieving, and lack of positive reinforcement? Will that problem be resolved by making allowances for all that you lack, and lowering the standards for living large to the point that no matter what you say, no matter what you do – everyone cheers you on toward victory? If that would work, great. But I don't think it works because we were created for a life of greater fulfillment than our community deciding they'll love us even if we act like a real loser.

In Romans, Paul gives us the ultimate word of affirmation when he says – at your lowest, God put his love on the line for us. He did it when our potential seemed pitiful and our rebellious spirit could have earned us a front row seat in the chamber of justice. God loved us when we were so low we'd have had to look up to have a conversation with that old serpent in the Garden of Eden. We suffer from low self-esteem? What better way to cure that crisis of self-worth than to realize that the incomparably great riches and love of God have been poured out upon us? God seems to think we were worth sending his son to protect us from our sin and shame.

The fact that God loves us like that seems to me to be a truth worth cheering about.

Recommended reading: Joshua 13-15

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