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Does God Like me? · The Living Freed Podcast

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Hey y 'all, I'm Hannah Liz, a coastal living,
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Jesus living, NC native, and this is the Living
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Free Podcast. where we discuss intentionally
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living our lives to the fullest that God has
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intended, having those late night open heart
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friend convos, not letting others, ourselves,
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or ideas hold us down, allowing Jesus to free
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us of the chains that we didn't know we were
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holding onto. You can see the full show notes
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attached to this episode, and if you loved this
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episode, please leave me a review. Alright, it's
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time for our weekly catch ups where you get to
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hear what's been going on in my life so you get
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to know me a little bit better. As you're listening
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to this podcast, I will just be getting back
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from Iceland. It will have been a 8 or 9 day
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long trip with my younger brother, and I'm sure
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it has been amazing. Can't wait to update y 'all
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on that next. What else will have been going
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on? Honestly, that's it. That's all I can think
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will be happening, so nothing too crazy. Okay,
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so what's in? Let's think about this. Probably
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rest if I had to guess what is in is rest I will
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be ready to get back to work and to chill out
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and what is out is Not my AC anymore. That's
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for sure. My AC has been back and It is glorious.
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Very thankful for that. Um, oh, you know what's
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really out and I'm so thankful is love Island
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y 'all I am so thankful to not be watching Love
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Island anymore. This last season was trash. I
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know we're like three weeks out from when it
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ended, but please I just did not enjoy it. It
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felt like a chore to watch. It wasn't a vibe.
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I did not really love everyone on the cast. I
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mean I love my little Amaya Papaya girl and we're
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all keeping up with like the aftermath drama.
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But yeah, I'm just not loving it. Also, I just
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don't know if I'll watch it again in the future.
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That's all there is no also. That's all I have
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to say on that. I'm thankful that it's over I
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think I'm thankful that it's out and I don't
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have to Let it consume my life and make sure
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no one gives me any spoilers or talk to clients
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about it anymore. I'm really happy about that
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Okay. Well anyways, let's dive into today's episode
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Y 'all, my whole life, I've been taught that
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God loves us and that's why he sent his son to
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die on the cross for us, that he loves me and
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cares for me. But that can become such a passing
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thought for most of us that grow up in church
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or just religious people in general. For those
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of us that have mental health disorders or childhood
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trauma, it's even harder to comprehend because
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if God loves you, why do you have anxiety? If
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God cares for you, why do you struggle with depression?
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If God even likes you, why don't you feel like
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he does? Did you know that 50 % of the world's
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population will struggle with mental health at
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some point in their life? That 1 out of 7 adolescents
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will have a mental health disorder? And even
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though there is an exact number, women are more
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likely to experience a mental health condition.
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We could jump down the rabbit hole of how sin
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came into the world and therefore we have mental
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health disorders in crappy adults that cause
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trauma, but that's not what we're here to talk
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about. I'm here to remind you, better yet, I'm
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here to convince you that not only does God love
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you, but he also likes you. Like a lot. Let's
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set a foundation and build from there. What is
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love? Well, Webster's Dictionary says it's a
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strong affection for another arising out of kinship
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or personal ties like maternal love for a child.
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Now, there are four different words for love
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in the Greek language, but the most common one
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in the New Testament is agape. This refers to
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selfless, unconditional love, often associated
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with divine love or charity. It's a love that
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extends to everyone, including those who may
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be difficult to love. Reading these definitions
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reminds me of what I would say to my friends
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that I love everyone, but I don't like everyone.
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That meaning that I don't wish ill on someone,
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I don't hate them, we might have personal ties,
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or I might carry some sympathetic feeling for
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them, so I love them. but because I don't really
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have the option to hate them. It would do me
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no good to hate them, but I definitely have the
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option to not like them and I will take that
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option most days. Okay, so let's look at the
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word like. Webster defines like as to feel attraction
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towards or take pleasure in, so to enjoy. B is
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to feel towards or regard. And C, to wish to
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have, aka to want. And the Greek word for like
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is phileo. This is a love, a friendship, a deep
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affection, and bond between people who are equals.
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It implies loyalty, virtue, and familiarity.
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For example, the love between close friends or
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strong bond within a community. The word love
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is perceived more as a noun and the word like
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is looked at more often as a verb, so an action
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word. We choose what we like, it's an action.
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We are made after God's image, so he must choose
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as well, right? So, does God like us? Does he
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like you? Does he like me? Does he actively choose
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again and again and again every day to like you?
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Does he even think about you? Or is he more like
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that parent or friend that claims to love you
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but treats you as an inconvenience? Better yet,
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how could he like you when you don't like you?
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So let's circle back to his love. God's love
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is unconditional. We as humans often compare
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it to a healthy parents love, so there are no
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conditions you must meet to keep it. You can't
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say the wrong thing, you can't look a certain
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way, you can't have it one day and lose it the
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next. If you're His, then you're His and that's
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that. But like is a different matter. Our parents
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don't always like us, our best friends don't
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always like us, and we, you and me, we don't
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always like us. But God isn't like that. His
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love and His like go hand in hand. He doesn't
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like us one day, and then the next he hears us
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say something and decides he doesn't like us.
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He likes us no matter what, just like he loves
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us. Okay, so we're going to look at a few verses
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so I can make an argument that he really likes
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you. I love the NIV translation lately, so that's
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what I'm going to read out of. Matthew 6 verse
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26 says, yet your Father in heaven feeds them.
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Are you not more important than the birds? I
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appointed you as a prophet to the nations. I'm
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sorry, but do you think he only knew Jeremiah
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while he was forming him and not you as well?
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Nahum 1 -7 says, in the ESV version by the way,
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the Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of
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trouble. He knows those who take refuge in him.
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Knows. He knows you. If you're taking refuge
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in him, he knows you. But before you take refuge
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in him, He knows you. He formed your inner being
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in Jeremiah. He made you fearfully and wonderfully
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made in Psalms. Why would he not know you before
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you even take refuge in him? Sorry, let me keep
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going. Matthew 10, 29 -31 says, Are not two sparrows
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sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall
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to the ground apart from your father. But even
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the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear
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not. Therefore, you are of more value than many
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sparrows. In Zephaniah 3 .17, in the NLT version,
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it says, He is a mighty Savior. He will take
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delight in you with gladness. With His love He
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will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over
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you with joyful songs. In Genesis 1 .31, it says,
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God saw what He made and it was good. Point blank
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period. So yeah, does God like you? Based on
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these verses, I'd say yes. Does He care for you?
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Also, yes. It might not seem like much, but here's
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your reminder that he cares about you and the
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little things about you. He likes your eyes.
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He likes your nose, even when it's in someone
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else's business. He likes your hair color, whatever
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color it might be right now. He likes your laugh.
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He likes your voice, whether you're singing Pink
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Pony Club or Oceans. He likes you. Really, if
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he cares about the birds of the air, the freaking
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birds of the air, Those little tiny rats with
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wings that fly about, sorry to those who like
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birds. How much more does he care for you? Because
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I personally hate birds, they creep me out, so
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I'm glad he likes them, because that means he
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likes me a whole lot more. Liking you is an act
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of choice he makes every day. He wants you, has
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regard for you, and he enjoys you. I think we
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often don't like ourselves, so we assume God
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must not like us and is forced to love us out
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of obligation, but that's not the case. You're
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not an obligation. You might feel that way sometimes,
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but that's not reality and it's not from him.
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I'm not sure how you like to process information
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or remind yourself of truths, but we're going
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to come up with an acrostic. So, for the word
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like, let's start with L. L. We will use the
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word love, plain and simple, because he loves
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you. Um, I will be immaculate. Duh. It's how
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he sees you. okay K is knowing he knows you E
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is easy let's use the word enjoys because he
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enjoys you and since we probably need to add
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an S for the active here and now then we have
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supports smiles and satisfied because he does
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support us I'm sure he looks down and smiles
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on us even when we don't smile at ourselves and
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he is very satisfied with us because, just like
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Genesis 1 .31 said, what he made was good. And
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girl, you might not think so, but he knows so.
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Your experience with love will shape your experience
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on what it means for someone to like you. Whether
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you had a bad parent, adult figure, friend, or
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boyfriend mistreat you, but your view of yourself
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will also determine your opinion on what it means
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for someone to like you. Some of us feel like
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we're difficult to love, so being liked too?
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Oh, forget about it. Not possible. Not gonna
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happen. Maybe you were used by friends a lot
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for what you had, social status or whatever,
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so you feel like you being liked is determined
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by what worth people place on you. You might
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feel like you have to show up a certain way at
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church for God to like you, dress nice, have
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your makeup and hair done, ready to serve or
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just show up in general, but that's not the truth.
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He will like you whether you show up in a new
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dress or sweatpants or stay home and spend one
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-on -one time with him, because he loves you.
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Therefore, he likes you. I had just started dating
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someone and was maybe a little over a month in
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when I got a really bad cold. This guy insisted
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on coming over to see me. I think he might have
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met my parents only once and I was around 19,
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so I was still living at home. I warned my dad
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that this guy was coming over while I laid on
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the couch with gross snotty tissues all around
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me and lots of blankets. My dad said, you should
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go put some makeup on before he gets here, and
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I said no. He knows I'm sick, he insisted on
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coming over to see me so he can see me like this,
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and if he doesn't like it then that's his problem,
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not mine. Well, after that, we kept dating for
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about two more years. Seeing me sick? Makeup
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list with snotty tissues didn't make him run
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away. In fact, he was around more than ever after
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that day Why because he liked me y 'all have
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heard the dating phrase if he wanted to he would
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well God wants to so he does You can't be too
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much ask too much not be enough for him to be
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like, oh this girl Just isn't doing it for me.
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She's asking too much. Let me take a break from
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her No, that's not God and that's not how he
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shows up or who he is. He likes it when you're
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a lot. He likes it when you're quiet and chill.
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He likes it when you're laughing too loud or
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crying out your emotions. He likes it when you
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ask big things of him. You can't gross him out
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or shame him away. You can't be too needy or
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overwhelm him because he likes you, cares about
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you, and the life you're living here on this
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earth. All I want for you is to leave this combo
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knowing you are not just loved, but liked by
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your Heavenly Father. The choices you make or
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have made, who you were or are, what others speak
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into you or how you feel about yourself, does
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not affect whether he likes you yesterday, today,
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or tomorrow. He likes you. Like a lot. And if
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you don't believe me, maybe you should go ask
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him to show you. Father, I ask that she knows
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that she is not just loved. Actually, I ask that
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she doesn't just assume she is loved. by it being
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repeated around her over and over and over, but
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that she knows in her heart and through her body
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that she is liked by you. That you like her,
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Lord. That you see her and you smile down upon
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her. You see her and you enjoy her. You see her
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singing in the car. You see her emotional outburst.
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You hear her cuss. You hear her rebuke herself
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on cussing, whatever it is, Lord. I hope she
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knows that you enjoy her. that you choose to
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like her every day, that it's not out of obligation,
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that it's not just because you loved her and
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your son died for her, but that you actively
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like her. If she doesn't feel liked, have her
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find a way to ask you to show you that you like
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her. Give her that reminder that even though
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she might not like herself or feel like others
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don't like her, that you constantly like her
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every single day. Whatever the devil is telling
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her, whatever doubts or fears or insecurities
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come in, whatever from her past is haunting her
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or her present, that she would remember that
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you like her and you choose to like her. That
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she's not just loved, but she is liked. Like
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a lot. And in Jesus' name, amen. Thank you so
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much for listening to the Living Freed Podcast.
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Let's get connected on Instagram. You can reach
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me at hannahlizd or email me at livingfreedpod
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at gmail .com. If you're loving the podcast,
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I'd be so honored if you go ahead and hit that
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subscribe button and leave me a review. And if
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you have any feedback or a subject you'd like
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me to cover, please email or DM me on Instagram.
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Again, thank you so much for listening. I hope
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you feel encouraged, lighter, and liked today.
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Bye y 'all!