Knowing Who I Am Will Lower My Stress

In 1 John 3:1 it says, “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (NIV)

We are all living in stressful times. More than ever, we need to learn resilience so that we can do what God has called us to do. That’s why the first step to being resilient is to remember how much God loves us. That’s the antidote to stress!

Part of fulfilling our purpose is becoming more like Jesus. And Jesus had no doubt in his mind that God the Father loved him. He talked about it over and over in verses like John 10:17, which says, “The Father loves me” (NLT).

Knowing and remembering that God has unconditional, extravagant, continuous, and never-ending love for me, just like he did for Jesus, is the foundation of a resilient life. As Paul says, “I am convinced that neither death nor life . . . nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39 NIV). I can be resilient, knowing that I can never be separated from God’s love.

We may be thinking, “Well, of course God loves Jesus. That’s his Son.” But did you know that Jesus says the same thing about his love for us as God’s daughter or son? In John 15:9-10, Jesus says, “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love” (NIV).

Understanding how much God loves me is the basis of my personal security. If I’m not convinced that God loves me at all times—unconditionally and completely—then I’m going to be easy prey for the disapproval of others. I’m going to be a people pleaser.

But when I’m secure in who I am as God’s child—when I understand and accept how God feels about me—then I can face difficult times with confidence and less stress.

When I need to be reminded of how much God loves me, I can just look at his Word.

“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1 NIV). 

As a believer, my self-worth is based on the fact that God loves me and calls me his child. I am his child now, not just sometime in the distant future. Knowing that I am his child should encourage me to live as Jesus did.