Are you feeling inadequate this morning?  Me, too.  As a matter of fact, I have been feeling incompetent for some time now due to a variety of life challenges.  Then last Thursday happened.

I was attending a dinner, and the speaker was talking about a very dark subject.  She was telling her story, and it was very far from pretty.  One thing the brave woman said with a trembling voice has captivated my thoughts since that night.  I am paraphrasing her words; I never thought Jesus could love and forgive a sinner as dirty as me.  Then one day I realized that my attitude about His forgiveness was equivalent to me putting Jesus back on the cross because He did not do His job right the first time and I could not do that.

Wow!  I have been thinking a lot about how many times I am crucifying Jesus again because I too am not feeling “good enough.”  The truth I often forget is that I am not good enough, never was, never will be and that is why Christ had to pay the ultimate price for me.

Jesus died for my inadequacies, and yours.  Being ashamed of them is a dishonor to Him.  He willingly gave his life to give me mine.  He suffered a cruel, undeserved death to complete me in all the areas I am incomplete.  Because He is whole, I am free to be broken.  Because he is perfect, I am free to be imperfect.  That is good news for a ragamuffin like me.

There is no need to twinge in light of my truth and no reason to cower to condemnation.  I am righteous because Jesus has risen.  Isaiah 61:10 says it best;  I am overwhelmed with joy in the LORD my God!  For he has dressed me in the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness.

I am prone, however, to forget what I know to be true.  I knew His promise, but I had forgotten.  I had forgotten, and thus, I had forsaken the Gospel.  Life has a tendency to court us away from the truth, but God has a tender character that carries us back under the shelter of His wings where we are allowed to be freely inadequate but fully accepted.  I am preaching this to myself today, friends.  I pray if need be you can find rest here, too.