Limiting Belief: Nobody loves me, cares for me, or takes notice.
Empowering Truth: No, God loves me.
When you think no one cares you’re alive, try missing a couple of car payments. — Unknown
Maybe you may feel unappreciated. Maybe you may think that no one cares. Maybe you feel like no one takes notice.
God Takes Notice
Know that God takes notice. God cares. God loves you.
Think about John 3:16. Speak that verse out-loud, and when you say the verse, insert your name.
For God so loved (YOUR NAME), that he sent his one and only Son.
Don’t just read it. Say it!
Think about that! God loved and cared for you so much that he sent Jesus to die on the cross for you. If you have nothing else to hold on to, hold on to that truth.
Furthermore, 1 Peter 5:7 says: “He cares for you.”
God is never too busy to not listen to you. His Word is always available to provide encouragement. His Holy Spirit is ever present to provide help.
Do You Care?
I hope you know this. And I hope this knowledge and faith provides you with peace. But you still think it would be nice if other people cared.
So I have a question for you. Do you care?
The golden rule is to love your neighbor as yourself (see Matthew 19:19, 22:39; Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27).
Hold up the mirror! Do you care and take interest in others? The truth of the matter is that so many of us are so self-absorbed in our affairs that we often don’t take the time or the effort to notice others and what they may be going through.
Are you wanting others to do for you, what you are not doing for them?
- Do you take time to listen and ask questions?
- Do you seek to truly understand and empathize?
- Do you offer appreciation and gratitude?
- Do you go out of your way to offer help?
There are times when we place a burden of expectation upon others that we don’t place upon ourselves.
Give More of What Want
Generosity is contagious and overflows. If you want more love, give more love. If you want more compassion, give more compassion. If you want more understanding, give more understanding. If you want more respect, give more respect.
There is a saying that you can’t out-give God. And these are things that come back to us tenfold.
Be the person you want other people to be. I know it is hard when you feel unloved and that nobody cares. The Devil will want to keep you down. He is going to do everything to keep you believing that you can’t love because you think you are not loved.
Don’t Idolize People
And don’t limit your caring and appreciation to a single person. You may think that people don’t care when in actuality it is a certain person that doesn’t care. Maybe you have put a certain person on a pedestal. You have tried to get them to love you, to care for you, and to show you affection. Maybe it is a spouse, parent, or a child.
Could it be that you have made an idol of that relationship? Are you looking for that person to give you what only God can give you? Have you become so absorbed into that relationship that you have neglected your relationship with God? Have you neglected offering care and compassion for other people because you are so focused on that one person?
With that said, keep loving that person. They may not be that different from you. Maybe they have bought the same Devil’s lie that you bought into. They think they can’t love because they don’t feel loved. Look deep and hard and ask yourself if you are expecting them to give to you something that you are not giving them.
Live Free of the Burden to Impress Others
The way that many of us try to get people to care about us is to impress them. You can impress people, but that does not translate to care. They are too busy living their lives. The old cliché is that people don’t care until they know how much you care. It goes with what I have been saying is that if you want people to care, then start caring.
The fact that people don’t care is not necessarily a bad thing. It can be a freeing realization that most people don’t care about you. They are not caring what you are wearing. They are not caring what you look like. They don’t care the house you live in or the car you drive. They don’t care that your child is an honor student. They don’t care that you messed up. They don’t care that you succeeded.
In short, they don’t care about things that don’t much matter. You don’t need to worry so much what people think because they are not thinking about you as much as you think. When you stop trying to impress people it frees you to be you and to live true to God’s calling. When you are freed from the burden to trying to impress people, it gives you pursue the most important things in life. It offers the opportunity to truly care and be cared for.
Betas says
Um, yes. Needed to hear that reminder.
Thank you, Pr. Phil. As always, a painless, thoughtful reminder of how we (I!) should be looking at things.
Always look forward to and appreciate it when “philressler.com” arrives in my mailbox.
Karen says
Inspirational and so valuable as always. Thank you so much!