“And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17 ESV
The church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints.
Let’s be honest: I’m a mess. So are you. Someone had to say it. 😀
Not so long ago, I could never have admitted to being broken. Back then, a large part of my identity hinged on how others perceived me. Love and acceptance felt conditional—given when I performed well, withdrawn when I didn’t. Cue shame. Cue guilt.
Can we be honest about our faults without carrying the crushing weight of shame? Can we accept our need for change without believing we’re unlovable? To anyone trained in conditional love, this sounds counterintuitive—maybe even impossible.
Can we be both broken and beautiful?
Yes! That’s the good news. Unconditional love does exist—and it’s more than a concept. It’s a gift, wrapped in the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.
Tim Keller captured it perfectly:
“The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.”
What would it look like if someone asked you to draw a picture of unconditional love? (I’ll wait. It’s not easy, is it?)
For years, I understood the Gospel in my head, but my heart lagged behind. Everything changed the day I stumbled across a video about a family who routinely adopted special needs children from around the world.
Short Adoption Video Clip – 1 minute
For the first time, my imagination caught up. I saw why the Bible uses the language of adoption to describe our salvation. This family didn’t adopt in spite of the children’s brokenness—they chose them because of it. The ones others overlooked were the ones they ran to. They believed unconditional love could transform brokenness into something beautiful: a family.
That video captures the essence of the Father’s heart.
He wants us. He looked across the world and picked you—not despite your brokenness, but because of it. The more damaged and forgotten we are, the more clearly His love shines through.
It’s not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. Jesus came for us—the unrighteous.
That’s true love. The kind that heals us, transforms us and makes us beautiful.
Run the play. Run in God’s unconditional love.
“We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope“
Tim Keller
💬 One Last Word…
Maybe you’ve read this and thought, “I want that kind of love. I want to be chosen, accepted, healed—even in my brokenness.”
Here’s the good news: you can.
You don’t have to clean yourself up first. You don’t have to fix the cracks or hide the pieces. God already knows, and He’s still calling your name. He’s not offering religion or rules—He’s offering a relationship, a forever family, and a love that changes everything.
The Bible says:
“To all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”
—John 1:12
That invitation still stands.
If you’re ready to step into that kind of love and begin a new life as a child of God, you can simply say something like this:
“God, I’m broken—and I know I can’t fix myself.
But I believe you love me, and that Jesus came for people just like me.
Thank you for dying for my sins, and rising again to give me new life.
I receive your forgiveness and your love.
Adopt me into your family.
Make me whole and teach me to follow you.
Amen.”
If you prayed that, welcome to the family. 💛
You are no longer just broken—you are beautifully His.
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