Loving the Good, the Bad, and Even the Ugly

By Andrea Merrell

As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, 

and serve Him with a loyal heart and with a willing mind;

for the Lord searches all hearts and understands

all the intent of the thoughts.

If you seek Him, He will be found by you;

but if you forsake Him,

He will cast you off forever.

1 Chronicles 28:9 NKJV

There I was in all my glory—no make-up and a plastic cap on my head, tied securely around my chin. Pieces of hair had been pulled through the holes in the cap and were sticking out like porcupine quills. I looked like a cartoon character with my finger stuck in an electrical socket.

In walked my fiancé. I fully expected him to take one look and run for the hills. He didn’t. Actually, he found the situation quite comical.

In reality, I’m glad he saw me at my worst before we got married. I’m not one for pretense. What you see is what you get. I actually know a woman who—at least for the first few years of her marriage—would go to bed with make-up on, get up and wash it off after her husband fell asleep, then get up early and put on fresh make-up before her husband woke up. Too much pressure for this gal.

Over the past forty-plus years, my husband has seen the good, the bad, and even the ugly—and loved me through it all. Because of his unconditional love, I learned early on that I didn’t have to hide anything from him.

In the same way, I don’t have to try and hide anything from God. As David said to Solomon, the Lord knows our thoughts and searches our heart. Nothing is hidden from Him. How comforting to know that I can be myself—even with all my faults and failures—knowing God’s love is unconditional and never fails.

He accepts me no matter what … the good, the bad, and—yes—even the ugly.

(Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net/farconville.)

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God loves us unconditionally, even with all our faults and failures.  via @AndreaMerrell (Click to tweet.)

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