Tuesday, February 17, 2026
Bible in a Year: Psalms 39-41 | Acts 16
Most of my life I believed I had to be perfect to be loved.
As a child I heard one of my parents say, “If I put Mark (my brother), and Marsha in a bag and shook it up I would have the perfect child.” Comments like these solidified my feelings that I wasn’t enough on my own, and I had to strive to be more than I was to be loved.
This comment also led me to believe that perfection is the only way to earn love, even from God. I was a mess. The harder I tried, the more I failed. My expectations for myself were unattainable. I was miserable.
One night in desperation I cried out to Jesus, “Help me! I need you!”. The very next day my husband asked me to attend church with him.
Calling out to him is all it takes. Jesus is there, waiting patiently for us to turn our hearts over to begin an amazing adventure and journey with him.
No matter what voices we carry with us from our lives, the truth is, we don’t need to be perfect to be loved by Jesus. It isn’t about perfection, it’s about progress.
Since the time of creation, God knew we could never be perfect. He never intended for us to earn our salvation. Our God is so holy and perfect and loves us so much he had a plan to save us from our sin. Sin separates us from God. This is why he sent his perfect Son, Jesus, to earth to save us.
Galatians 2:20
My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So, I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
This verse fills me with so much joy. It’s a reminder that when we believe Jesus was crucified for our sins and was resurrected from the dead, we are a new creation and our old selves no longer exist.
He lives in us and changes us through the Holy Spirit. His Spirit guides us and leads us. We don’t need to be perfect, we only need to follow him. We can trust him. He wants us to know him and enjoy the amazing adventure he has in store for us. Praise God, he saved us!
Questions:
What lies are you believing about yourself?
What is the truth?
How has God made you a new creation?
Next Steps:
Pray and ask God to reveal if you are believing any lies about him or yourself.
Listen.
Read verses in the Bible that tell you who God says you are. Write them down and meditate on them.
Prayer:
God, thank you for loving me and saving me. I am overwhelmed that the King of Kings sent his Son to save me. I am so grateful that you are changing me. I don't have to do it myself. Help me to always listen and obey you. Please continue to work in my life and make me more and more like you. I praise and worship you! Amen.
Series Theme Verse:
Colossians 3:10
Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.
This post was written by Marsha Raymond, an Oregon attendee, and a regular contributor to the Daily LivingItOut.