Matthew 8:34 -- On Being Unpopular

"And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts."
Matthew 8:34


What struck me today was that even Christ was (at least at times) unpopular and unwanted. It isn't our lack of perfection that allows those types of things into our lives... it's just part of the human experience. 

Sometimes our experiences with rejection or hostility encourage us to believe that we are unloved or even unlovable, and even the scriptures seem a little critical at times, telling us that we are "less than the dust of the earth" (Helaman 12:7, Mosiah 4:2), or that God can't "look upon sin with the least degree of allowance" (Alma 45:16), which, you know, can make us as imperfect beings a little nervous.  

However, for one, Christ suffered an died to atone for us, so that our unacceptable "fallen" state could be overcome.  So that we didn't have to compare unfavorably to dust (the point being that dust is obedient).  And two, Christ suffered for us because we ARE worth something.  We are worth that suffering, and that pain, in God's eyes.  Our value as people is independent of what anyone thinks of us, and we are always loved and valued by God, who loves us enough to encourage us and to help us to improve rather than just stagnating. :)

Today, as we're struggling with other people who might not want to hang out with us, let's take a step back and remember that we're awesome and valuable even when other people don't think so... and even when we ourselves don't think so.  Doesn't mean we should just dismiss people or give up on self-improvement, of course.  We should love others and become better, but no matter where we are in that journey of learning to love and learning to be lovable, God still loves us, and we still matter. :)  Let's keep going forward, getting better all the time. :)