In a world where we are told we need to be enough for everyone, including ourselves, the weight of being the savior of our stories is too much for us to bear. What if you could lean into the capacity of Christ and practice the beauty of God-dependence instead of self-dependence? We don’t need to empower ourselves in order to face life’s hardships and heartaches. Let Becky Beresford’s words offer freedom and relief as we journey back to the gospel and embrace the God who is more than enough for us all. It’s joy to welcome Becky to the farm’s table today…

Guest Post by Becky Beresford

I couldn’t believe we were here again. 

Sitting alone on my bedroom floor, tears soaked my face as I recalled yet another fight with my husband. Only a few minutes earlier I had slammed the door and yelled from the depths of my wounded heart, “I’ll never be enough for you!” In reality, I never felt like I was enough for anyone, let alone my husband. 

We were about a decade into our marriage and our relationship was accelerating toward the threshold of separation. As someone who struggled with pleasing people her whole life, feeling like I could not do enough to save our marriage was gut-wrenching.

I wanted to fix things.

I wanted to paint myself as a perfect partner and wife. I wanted to forgive and move forward, but bitterness had planted its fatal root and I was ashamed for letting it happen. Blame sank into the deepest part of my soul, leaving me knee-deep in guilt. Day after day, I could barely handle the pain. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get out of this pit to bandage my bleeding wounds. 

“Telling our full story (ugly bits and all) ushers in the gift of authenticity, but it also creates needed space where others can see God redeem.“

Until recently, when I would fight with my husband, I’d roam around our bedroom and turn the pictures of us face down on the tables. Yes, I was usually angry. And yes, I’d leave them that way so he could see it. Not my finest hours, but my hurt feelings were often doing the leading.

What I didn’t realize was that every time I hid a photo from his sight and mine, I allowed myself to be swallowed by shame. I couldn’t look at those pictures because I saw how my husband was caring for me, and how could anyone love me when I acted foolishly or said those awful words? How could my flaws be covered when my failure seemed too great? 

We all have ugly parts of our lives we don’t want others to see or know. Well, now you know one of mine. . . and I’m glad. A little squeamish, but glad. And here’s why. Telling our full story (ugly bits and all) ushers in the gift of authenticity, but it also creates needed space where others can see God redeem. 

And redeem He will.

When darkness hovers thickly and threatens to stifle the light, we need to remember two important things: 

(1) Nobody is too far gone from the redemptive hand of God.
(2) We have an enemy who fights against all that is good.

The word gospel comes from the Anglo-Saxon term god-spell, meaning “good story.” It’s a translation of the Latin word evangelium and the Greek word euangelion, meaning “good news” or “good telling.” At its core, the gospel is the ultimate story of God’s redemption, taking all that the enemy meant for evil and turning it around for good. But what does this mean for us when we feel weak, weary, or powerless? 

“The gospel is good not because of what we have or haven’t done—rather, the gospel is good because the Maker of heaven and earth has done everything for us.“

It means everything.

We worship a God who chose us from before the foundation of the world, knowing who we were, what we would do, and where we would go. And yet, the love He has for His children outweighs the heaviest of costs, even the death of His Son on a cross. The gospel is good not because of what we have or haven’t done—rather, the gospel is good because the Maker of heaven and earth has done everything for us. 

This good story points toward our desperate need for God and highlights His extravagant act of deliverance. It shows how we cannot depend on ourselves, we cannot save ourselves, we cannot dig our way out of the muck and the mire. We are in too deep. And so, our Father “reached down from heaven and rescued [us]; he drew [us] out of deep waters” (Ps. 18:16). When we are drowning or wish the raging waves would still, God becomes our rescue. He is both our salvation and our continual lifesaver. 

Power is present as we share our honest stories—when we let others know we are not enough, and we never want to be—not when there is One who is more than enough for all. With every declaration of God’s ability to redeem our struggles, we offer up our lives as a glorious retelling of the good news. 

We get to show others how absence in our life ushers in His abundance. How our failings give God the opportunity to fill.

How our lessening on earth means we experience the kingdom’s gain. 

“Leaning into Christ’s capacity not only frees us from having to carrying what we were never made to carry, it makes us more than enough in Him.“

Today when I say I’m not enough on my own, I feel a sense of release.

I’ve been liberated from the pressure to please or the drive to earn my worth. I can’t be enough for my husband because that is Christ’s role alone to fill. My husband can’t be enough for me because only Christ can be my all. 

Jesus is the single source of sufficiency and security that can satisfy the empty parts of every human soul. There are no exceptions, no matter what others may tell us. 

Only the cross can wash away our sins, and only in our weaknesses can we be made new and whole—not by our efforts or hard-won grit but by the gracious love of the Father who promises to make us complete in the fullness of Himself. 

We are not the savior of our stories. It was never our role to play. Because of Jesus, we have an Advocate, Redeemer and Friend who proves Himself faithful in the bleakest and brightest moments. Leaning into Christ’s capacity not only frees us from having to carrying what we were never made to carry, it makes us more than enough in Him.

This gospel provides the rest our weary hearts need.

*Adapted from an excerpt in She Believed HE Could, So She Did

---

{Our humble thanks to Moody for their partnership in today’s devotional.}