Many children and teens feel they are never enough. No matter how much they do or succeed at, it’s never enough. The pouring in of their time and energy is like filling a cracked glass. Always thirsty and unfulfilled… Always striving to more perfection instead of believing in themselves as uniquely created masterpieces of God. Instead of believing they are enough with just being who they were created to be, not in doing what others want them to do or feel.
Some “never-enough” feeders are:
- Parents who want their children to fulfill their own unfulfilled dreams and don’t allow their children to find out what their own passions really are
- Parents or teachers who spout off debasing remarks (It takes a lot more positive feedback to counteract the negative.)
- Society who sets high demands on them to be perfect, outwardly flawless like models and movie stars
- Peers who demean and humiliate them because they are “different”
Children and adults alike need to feel accepted just as they are, not as others want them to be. They need to know they are loved, capable, and enough just because they are who they are, not because of what they do or don’t do according to others. “A deep sense of love and belonging is an irreducible need of all people. We are biologically, cognitively, physically, and spiritually wired to love, to be loved, and to belong. When those needs are not met, we don’t function as we were meant to. We break. We fall apart. We numb. We ache. We hurt others. We get sick.” (“Want to be happy? Stop trying to be perfect” by Brené Brown)
In Jesus’ eyes, we are enough. He always accepts us just as we are. He counted us enough to be created, enough to die for, and enough to live for and make intercession for us. His love is unconditional. We never have to earn His love. He can fill all the empty places in our hearts and lives.
“Because you are precious to me. You are honored, and I love you.” (Isaiah 43:4 NLT)
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT)
“You will be a crown of splendor in the Lord’s hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God.” (Isaiah 62:3)
Freed to Fly 
Oh my goodness you are my favorite person and GOD always sends me messages through you at JUST the right time. I was telling someone about trayvon who looks like my granddad, so i was REAL sad about it, but i felt like WHY do we have to be perfect. I have to speak proper or dress proper or live in the ‘proper’ way, not necessarily the GOD way but the PROPER way depending on whose in charge that day. i mean I like writing but i feel FORCED to get another time of job that’s ‘acceptable’ if I do something wrong i don’t get mercy or its you deserved what you got because you should have been better. I mean really? when can i be loved for ME, flaws and all. I deliberately started messing up because nobody was paying any attention and when i did well no one cared. So i stopped trying. so thanks for this.
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Thank you for your kind words, P. I’m so sorry people around you put so much pressure on you. I know it’s easy to give up, but keep trying. Allow yourself to be YOU. God created YOU special with a unique purpose in this life. You ARE enough! 🙂
I loved your analogy in your last blog post about sometimes being like water and adapting to whatever container you were in. Leaving off stuff God wanted you to keep and sometimes not leaving stuff He wanted you to let go. A great lesson for all of us – to fill our role as the unique person God created us to be (HIS container) instead of being molded as others want us to be.
Yes, that is so sad about Trayvon. My heart aches for that family.
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