Darling Tola. Thank you thank you thank you for your bravery and the generosity you give by sharing your heart.
The God I love is one of an overflowing love for me in spite of my many failings and it’s why I really struggle with the Old Testament as I feel like it can feel hopeless for someone as flawed as me so thank you also for some context there which made me breath a sigh of relief.
Love you Tola, you are an inspiration to us all xxx
I appreciated reading this as someone who wants to be a mother. Your vulnerability has given us ALL a voice. On top of a child, we carry so much else. Your bravery and faith in God is stunning!
Dear Tola, sometimes we have to learn that we are valuable and worthy to have what we really want in life and not to settle, that we ARE worthy to have what we want. This has certainly been the case for me in my life. Thank you for sharing your heartfelt words. I had to learn myself that it was "okay to love my Self" because I was taught that "you have to suffer, like Jesus did to be found worthy of God's love and approval". I learned the hard way. That is not God's way. I had to realize that I had value and that despite any mistakes (however heinous or dark they were) that God forgives and wants me to learn that I AM lovable and good still because He resides in me as my Soul. God in me is PERFECT and that never changes. If I make a mistake, I need to surrender it and be willing to learn (by repenting) my mistake to God and vow to do better. That is what God wants.
So I keep concentrating on God within and more and more identifying with being like God who resides within me as my Soul. God is perfect!
I like this verse particularly as God showed me that we are to love others, yes, but to LOVE THEM AS WE DO OURSELVES. "AS" is imperative - because if you do not love your Self, you cannot love others really because you have nothing out of which to give. Here it is;
Matthew 22:36-40 KJV
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment.
And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
God bless you, Tola. We've all come short but He promised He will help us if we but turn to Him.
Hey, Tola Doll, this post on your experience with abortion, moved me to realize that my comment on your Valentine post was a faux paw (my French). It was grandfatherly wisdom ill dispersed. I'm sorry and a bit chagrined, so please forgive yours truly. It's too easy to skate unknowingly over what others have suffered. Anyway, I'm delighted you love Overhead. Until I was in my thirties, I wouldn’t touch God with a ten foot pole. (The ten foot pole was one of my mom's favorite phrases.) But now, at the end of the day, I got religion, and I'm guessing you got some, too.
Thank you so much for sharing your story. I had shivers reading this and still not sure if its because of the immense vulnerability and transparency that I feel is often lost in the church, or the fact that you still so clearly give hope to flawed readers like me by reminding us of Jesus' love for us, despite what we condemn ourselves for. Either way, thank you so much and may God continue to bless you X
Darling Tola. Thank you thank you thank you for your bravery and the generosity you give by sharing your heart.
The God I love is one of an overflowing love for me in spite of my many failings and it’s why I really struggle with the Old Testament as I feel like it can feel hopeless for someone as flawed as me so thank you also for some context there which made me breath a sigh of relief.
Love you Tola, you are an inspiration to us all xxx
Thank you so much for choosing vulnerability and sharing your experience. This is powerful, generous and helpful writing. Well done!
I appreciated reading this as someone who wants to be a mother. Your vulnerability has given us ALL a voice. On top of a child, we carry so much else. Your bravery and faith in God is stunning!
Dear Tola, sometimes we have to learn that we are valuable and worthy to have what we really want in life and not to settle, that we ARE worthy to have what we want. This has certainly been the case for me in my life. Thank you for sharing your heartfelt words. I had to learn myself that it was "okay to love my Self" because I was taught that "you have to suffer, like Jesus did to be found worthy of God's love and approval". I learned the hard way. That is not God's way. I had to realize that I had value and that despite any mistakes (however heinous or dark they were) that God forgives and wants me to learn that I AM lovable and good still because He resides in me as my Soul. God in me is PERFECT and that never changes. If I make a mistake, I need to surrender it and be willing to learn (by repenting) my mistake to God and vow to do better. That is what God wants.
So I keep concentrating on God within and more and more identifying with being like God who resides within me as my Soul. God is perfect!
I like this verse particularly as God showed me that we are to love others, yes, but to LOVE THEM AS WE DO OURSELVES. "AS" is imperative - because if you do not love your Self, you cannot love others really because you have nothing out of which to give. Here it is;
Matthew 22:36-40 KJV
Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
This is the first and great commandment.
And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
God bless you, Tola. We've all come short but He promised He will help us if we but turn to Him.
Hey, Tola Doll, this post on your experience with abortion, moved me to realize that my comment on your Valentine post was a faux paw (my French). It was grandfatherly wisdom ill dispersed. I'm sorry and a bit chagrined, so please forgive yours truly. It's too easy to skate unknowingly over what others have suffered. Anyway, I'm delighted you love Overhead. Until I was in my thirties, I wouldn’t touch God with a ten foot pole. (The ten foot pole was one of my mom's favorite phrases.) But now, at the end of the day, I got religion, and I'm guessing you got some, too.
JBSPalmer
Hi Tola,
Thank you so much for sharing your story. I had shivers reading this and still not sure if its because of the immense vulnerability and transparency that I feel is often lost in the church, or the fact that you still so clearly give hope to flawed readers like me by reminding us of Jesus' love for us, despite what we condemn ourselves for. Either way, thank you so much and may God continue to bless you X