In Psalm 13 we find questions that everyone feels at times. “How much longer will you forget me, Lord? Forever? How much longer will you hide yourself from me? How long must I endure trouble? How long will sorrow fill my heart day and night? How long will my enemies triumph over me?” (Psalm 13:1-2).
More often than not, we feint humility to cover up our feelings of despair. We wonder if God made some sort of horrible mistake while creating us. Perhaps a part was left out or a piece cross-threaded during our assembly.
Other times, we hypothesize that it isn’t God’s fault. It was our parents or caregivers that dropped the ball. Maybe it was that horrible thing that happened. That thing that we don’t want to talk about lest we condemn ourselves by our own testimony.
The most damning theory of all is that we’re somehow irreversibly flawed. It all started with a wrong decision that we can never take back. And no matter how hard we tried, we never really recovered. For years, denial worked best and would still work if it weren’t for those voices that won’t stop reminding us. “You know what you are!” they shout.
Welcome to our new series, Masterpiece. A series about you and your struggle for loving yourself as much as God loves you. Not just through rational logic or because the Bible says so, but because you actually believe you are a masterpiece.
Masterpiece is conceived as a trilogy. The first two parts are based on a book by Aundi Kolber. A licensed therapist who shared her own struggles and dedicated her life to helping others deal with their own brokenness. Her book is titled Try Softer1.
John Li joins our series design team as a content expert. With advanced degrees in Psychology and Sociology, John brings academic rigor to this intersection between faith and science.
As Psalm 13 continues we read a recognition of God’s saving grace at work. The Psalmist sings out to God “I rely on your constant love; I will be glad, because you will rescue me. I will sing to you, O Lord, because you have been good to me (Psalm 13:5-6).
I pray that you will join us each Sunday morning at 10:30 am. We share our weekly episodes on our YouTube channel. We go live at 10:30 am. You can find these links along with more information about us, or join our live broadcast on our website at FlintAsbury.org.
Pastor Tommy
1 Aundi Kolber. Try Softer: A Fresh Approach to Move Us out of Anxiety, Stress, and Survival Mode–and into a Life of Connection and Joy. Carol Street, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2020.