A Letter to 'Myself"

Dear Self,

I'm sorry! I realize how much I've hurt you. 
I'm sorry for comparing you with others and making you feel that you're a failure. I'm sorry for not accepting you just as you are.
I'm sorry for the constant pressures you need to cope up with. Sorry for looking down upon you and not encouraging you to stand up strong each time you fall.
Sorry for making you feel that you're good for nothing. Sorry for being so negative towards you. 

And there are so many other things that I need to be sorry for. Despite it all, today, I want you to realize how important and precious you are.

People might label your physical being as 'fat', 'dark', 'short' or 'ugly'; but I want you to know that you are beautifully created. You are beautiful to the One who created you and that makes all the difference.

You are not defined by your past. You are a new creation and a better person. I choose to forgive you and let go all that has happened simply because I cannot condemn God's beloved.

You are not what your grades or education tells about you. You are not just all about your medals, achievements or loses. You're worth more than all of these.

Yes, you have failed a thousand times. But that's bound to happen as a you're just a human. That doesn't make you a failure. God doesn't see you as a failure. He loves you unconditionally. Each time you fall, you get to learn something that makes you a better person.

You are not a garbage dump. I'm sorry for letting all the negativity affect you so bad. You are a renewed mind full of hope, truth, trust and vision. People have let you down, but you are more than a conqueror each time you choose to stand strong and patient. God uses the weak to lead the strong simply because they are totally dependent on Him and His wisdom. So, remain that way. Wait on Him and you will renew your strength each day.

You are God's masterpiece. You don't need to be like him or like her. You don't need to always be appreciated in the eyes of people. Maybe your work here is backstage. But remember, that nothing can be done without the invested efforts of the people working backstage. Your reward is far greater than what you expect it to be.

Give yourself a break. You just need to be 'YOU'- the way God has made you, the way God loves you and the way He wants you to be- simply 'YOU'.

Am I a Pharisee?

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
‭‭John‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭NLT‬‬
http://bible.com/116/jhn.3.16.nlt

When John says 'the world', he also meant the Pharisees. Yes, Jesus loved them too and He would accept them if they would repent of their sins and choose to follow Him faithfully. But they didn't. So Jesus chose to be straightforward with them.

Who are the Pharisees today?
They are the ones who read the word, but don't understand it; ones who know the word, but their lives aren't attuned to it. They are Christians who claim to have a profound knowledge of the word and yet they lack wisdom. They brag about their deeds yet are spiritually empty vessels. They live a life built on the foundation of their own lives. They deliberately use provocative language and look down upon others.
-They mislead the others.
““Watch out!” Jesus warned them. “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
Then at last they understood that he wasn’t speaking about the yeast in bread, but about the deceptive teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭16:6, 12‬ ‭NLT‬‬
http://bible.com/116/mat.16.6,12.nlt
-They are vicious.
"But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to watch him baptize, he denounced them. “You brood of snakes!”...."
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭3:7‬ ‭NLT‬‬
http://bible.com/116/mat.3.7.nlt

How do we deal with them?
With love. Love means nothing without actions. And our action of live towards them can be to pray for them. The Holy Spirit will give us the discernment to recognise such people. He will put the right words into our mouths when we need to be straightforward. He will give us the wisdom to understand when we need to be silent and the strength to do the same. Humility is the key.
“He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭25:9‬ ‭NLT‬‬
http://bible.com/116/psa.25.9.nlt

But being humble doesn't require you to be a door mat. Jesus was the perfect example of serving in humility. He sat with the sinners and He washed the feet of His disciples. He asked God to forgive those who chose to crucify Him. Yet, throughout the Gospels, you'll find Him being straightforward with the Pharisees.

We don't need to ask God to punish such people who hurt us. We need to pray to God to forgive them. We need to forgive them and let them go. Finally, we are not accountable for the lives they live. We are accountable for the way we live. We need to prepare ourselves for the greater day in such a way, that we will be able to answer our Father for our doings. We need to reflect upon our own actions and avoid being a Pharisee.