Even on the Bad Days
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus …” Romans 8:1 (NIV)
Some days I really don’t like myself. Days when I’m impatient and irritable. Days when my attitude is not the greatest and I don’t love others like I should.
Perhaps those days happen because I’m overly stressed or didn’t get enough sleep the night before. Or maybe my introverted soul is just worn out from too much interaction with too many people. Whatever the reason, when those days come around, I often become my own worst critic and beat myself up for it. Repeatedly.
Why can’t you just get it together? I wonder, feeling certain I’m the only one ever to have days like this.
Except … I suspect I’m not the only one. I suspect perhaps you, too, have days where you’re not at your finest. In fact, maybe you’re having one now.
The Apostle Paul could relate. In Romans 7, he talks about this ongoing struggle of wanting to do what’s right but inevitably doing what’s wrong. Loving God but still fighting against the sinful nature within.
Just a few verses later, though, in Romans 8:1, he reminds us:
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus …”
No condemnation. You know what that means?
It means my worth is not based upon my performance. My worth is based upon the price Jesus was willing to pay for me, and He paid it all. Even on my bad days, even when I’m struggling to love myself, His love for me never changes. It stands firm and secure. Always.
So what do I do with that?
- I remember that I’m not just tolerated but cherished by my Father.
- I remember that a bad day doesn’t devalue my soul or somehow make me less-than in His eyes.
- I remember that because I belong to Christ, when God looks at me, He doesn’t see my failures and mistakes; He sees the holiness of His Son.
This doesn’t excuse any wrong action on my part, but it does mean I don’t have to live in defeat. Sometimes I need that reminder.
Today let’s choose to remember that in our less-than-stellar moments, we don’t have to stay in condemnation. We can take a deep breath and move forward with our heads held high, our identity firmly in check as God’s beloved daughters. Because that’s who we are.
We are His, even on the bad days, and that’s all that matters in the end.
Father, thank You that because of Your Son, Jesus, I don’t have to live in a place of defeat. Thank You that, even on my bad days, Your love for me never changes. Help me to remember that always. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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