When You Feel Like You’re Not Good Enough

If you’ve ever felt like you’re not good enough, then you need to read this post! Feelings of inferiority and of not measuring up to a standard of excellence are flagrant. I’ve experienced them, too, especially within the context of God’s love for me: How can I possibly expect Him to love and delight in me when I’m so flawed? 

What makes us feel like we’re not good enough?

Our minds always lean toward the negative. Perhaps that’s why we berate ourselves when we make an unintentional mistake, or when we sin whether purposefully or not. “You did it again,” we tell ourselves. “You’ll never get it right. No matter what you do, you’ll never be good enough.”

In contrast to our negative thinking and self-talk, God’s Word offers hope and reassurance:

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12)

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (Philippians 1:6)

Knowing our tendency to lean toward the negative, Satan often plants lies in our minds in his attempt to destroy us. These lies are the seeds that cause our negative self-talk to sprout and wrong beliefs to take root.

Satan is all about shaming us and trapping us in our mistakes, so be on guard. He’ll say things such as, “You’ve really blown it this time. There’s no going back.” Or, “You’re a hot mess without a message. Give it up.” Or, “You don’t deserve God’s love or trust. Why would He ever give you a role in building His kingdom?”

Lies, lies, lies! Satan is the master of lies, so let’s refuse to play his destructive game. Instead, let’s embrace the truth that our loving heavenly Father never uses our failures as leverage to shame or humiliate us. His goal is to restore us, mature our faith, and make us more like Jesus. 

Even though we might feel as though we’re not good enough for God, the opposite is true: He loves us despite our flaws.

This man felt like he wasn’t good enough

Mephibosheth is an Old Testament character (with a challenging name!) who struggled with feeling not good enough. His issue may have been physical—his story mentions several times that he was lame in both feet. 

Mephibosheth’s father, Jonathan, had been David’s best friend. After Jonathan and King Saul died in battle, David ascended to the throne. Shortly afterward, he learned of Mephibosheth’s whereabouts and brought him to the palace to fulfill a promise he’d made to care for Jonathan’s family. (1 Samuel 20:14-17)

David said, “I will give you all the property that once belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will eat here with me at the king’s table!”

Mephibosheth bowed respectfully and exclaimed, “Who is your servant, that you should show such kindness to a dead dog like me?” 

A dead dog? Are you kidding me? What a statement! Clearly, this guy did not feel worthy to be in David’s presence, let alone receive good gifts and dine at the king’s table. But here’s the thing: his feelings of not being good enough for David had no bearing on David’s kindness toward him.

This story ends with these words: “And Mephibosheth, who was crippled in both feet, lived in Jerusalem and ate regularly at the king’s table.” David’s invitation to dine in his presence wasn’t a mere one-time offer: “Let’s get together for dinner tonight.” This offer was meant for a lifetime. (2 Samuel 9:1-13) So beautiful, yes?

Truths to remember when you feel like you’re not good enough

Many of us experience feelings of unworthiness, but our emotions don’t diminish God’s love for us. Neither do they limit God’s lavish grace toward us. He sees our flaws and failings, and He loves us anyway.

When those feelings of not being good enough creep in, let’s turn our focus to these truths and meditate on them:

•  God adopts you

All who enter a relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ are automatically adopted into His family, and this gives Him great joy. No one forces Him to sign the papers. Making you a permanent member of His family is His idea, and He does it with pleasure

God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. (Ephesians 1:5 NLT)

• God delights in you

You bring Him such joy that He can’t contain Himself. He bursts into song over you.

For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears.  He will rejoice over you with joyful songs. (Zephaniah 3:17 NLT)

• God calls you His own

You’re no stranger to God. He created you, ransomed you from the kingdom of darkness and brought you into His kingdom of light, and calls you by name. You belong to Him.

But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says, “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1 NLT)

Like Mephibosheth, you might feel as though you’re not good enough to enter the King’s presence or receive His good gifts. But remember this: our feelings don’t change the truth. God loves us more than mere words can express, and He has invited us to dine at His table for eternity. (Luke 14:15-24)