I’m gonna say this here in case you need to see it. The God of the Christian tradition understood to be the God of heaven and earth, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob revealed as Jesus of Nazareth, loves you just as you are, not as you think you should be. In a world fraught with a million tensions and traumas, I realize that statements like this sometimes fall short or come off trite.

Still, there is Jesus, the One revealed in the Christian Scriptures. In the midst of all the tensions and traumas of humanity the story reveals One who loves and suffers with us, promising something more to us, something that speaks to what we feel is possible deep in our bones. He promises the transcendent and mysterious—something bigger than what we see and hear and feel. And while we wait for it to be revealed, he promises to make his presence known to all who long for it and anticipates its fulfillment. We are assured that none of us are the sum total of our worst decisions, or even our best decisions. Jesus declares each one of us intrinsically valuable and full of divine dignity, from the top of our head to the soles of our feet. You are loved beyond your feelings of worthiness or unworthiness.

There are many convoluted portrayals of Jesus in the USA. I know, because I’ve contributed to the problem. But there’s always the Jesus revealed in the Christian Scriptures. He’s the One I hope you’ll look at. He’s the One I hope you’ll hear say, “You are my beloved.”