James: A Faith that Works

At the start of creation, insecurity was not a known struggle. Adam and Eve did not look into a mirror and wince at their reflection. Their eyes saw each other. They saw the glory of God’s creation, the perfection of the garden, and all the goodness that clothed the earth. God had created them in His image, and He saw that it was good (Genesis 1:26-31).

But then the serpent came. Adam and Eve ate fruit from the one tree God had commanded them to avoid. And with this single choice, everything changed. Adam and Eve were ashamed by their nakedness. They were aware of their faults and inadequacies. The security they’d once found in the near presence of their God was stripped away.

Even as Christians, so many of us struggle with insecurities today. When is the last time you looked at your reflection in the mirror and turned away? How often do you pick apart your appearance and call out the things you wish you could change? Do you ever feel like you’re not enough the way you are, like you need to be like someone else to matter and to be loved by God?

Friends, you are not alone in these feelings of insecurity. But don’t look at yourself through the eyes of fallen humanity. Don’t compare yourself to airbrushed models on magazine covers. Don’t pick yourself apart through the eyes of man.

Instead, look at yourself through the eyes of your Creator. God knows you are broken in sin. He sees your insecurities. And He loves you unconditionally— enough to come and redeem you with His love on the cross, to “rejoice over you with singing†(Zephaniah 3:17).

Even when the world makes you feel insecure, know that your identity is secure in Christ. God is our ultimate security. And we are His beloved children. • Becca Wierwille

• What are some of your deepest insecurities?

• The enemy likes us to believe lies about who we are. He thrives on our insecurities. Go back and look at each of the insecurities you wrote down. What are truths God says about you in His Word? How do those truths negate the lies?

The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17 (NIV)

Read Verses:

James 1:19-27; 2:14-26