When We Don’t Love Ourselves, God Still Does: Mike Weaver and James Merritt
Jesus Calling: Stories of Faith
Jesus Calling
4.6 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 10 December 2020
⏱️ 27 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
We all struggle with insecurities and feeling like we aren’t enough. But we serve a God who loves us regardless of how much we love ourselves. And He can still use us, even when we don’t feel equipped. Mike Weaver, lead singer of the Dove-Award winning group Big Daddy Weave, lived much of his life from a place of low self-esteem, always comparing himself to others and wishing he looked different. But he had a special and unexpected moment with God when he realized that God doesn’t just love him—He likes him, too. That realization helped Mike begin to appreciate himself and his own special gifts, refreshing his perspective and perception of God. Dr. James Merritt, pastor of Cross Pointe Church in Atlanta, knows that more than anything, our character counts, even more than what others might think about us. He shares how we can cultivate strong character, and why standing for what we believe in holds a greater reward than getting approval from someone else.
Links, Products, and Resources Mentioned:
Past interview: Chelsea Crockett
Upcoming interview: Sheryl Brady
I Am Redeemed book by Mike Weaver
Character Still Counts book by Dr. James Merritt
Interview Quotes:
“I just never felt like I belonged in front of people. However, worship would give me an opportunity to disappear and still do what I love.” - Mike Weaver
“The way I thought other people were accepting me is how I was able to accept me. The way I thought other people were liking me is how I gave myself permission to like me.” - Mike Weaver
"I was telling God this long list of things that I hated about myself, and then that still, small voice of the Holy Spirit interrupted: 'Michael, why don't you let Me tell you what I think about you for once?'" – Mike Weaver
“Jesus came in and He bailed me out again. He did it again. He broke through for me. And He always is the hero of my story. And so I was just like, ‘God, how amazing that You can bring this [song] out of self-hatred. That's how great of a Redeemer You are.’” - Mike Weaver, on the success of his song, “Redeemed”
“We have experienced Him in such incredible ways in that place of need, realizing, Jesus, we need You.” - Mike Weaver
“When God looks at us, He's not looking at our mistakes. He is looking at what Jesus has done on our behalf and our identity. Our entire identity is rooted not in our imperfection, but the perfection of Jesus Christ applied to our life.” - Mike Weaver
“At the end of the day, at the end of your life, character is everything.” - James Merritt
“Character is not taught, it's caught. And the best teachers of character are parents.” - James Merritt
“I think it all begins with saying, ‘You know what? Character is more important to me than my reputation. It really is the essence of who I am.’” - James Merritt
“At the end of your life, it really won't matter what anybody thought about you. The only thing that will matter is what God knew about you.” - James Merritt
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Enjoy watching these additional videos from Jesus Calling YouTube channel:
Audio Playlist: https://bit.ly/2PrbuwH
Video Playlist: https://bit.ly/2PsmEkJ
What’s Good? Playlist: https://bit.ly/3i7VUlZ
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Join us on Tuesdays this fall for the Jesus Calling stories of faith television show on Circle |
| 0:06.0 | TV hosted by country music superstar Lauren Elena. |
| 0:10.4 | Each week we'll talk with people from all walks of life about their heart aches, their victories, their joy, and their pain, and how their faith kept them going through it all. |
| 0:20.0 | You don't want to miss it, Tuesdays at 8.30 p.m. Eastern time and re-erring Sundays at 2 p.m. |
| 0:27.4 | Eastern this fall on Circle TV. Visit Jesus Calling.com slash TV to find out how to watch in your area. |
| 0:39.0 | You know, I never wanted to be a singer. |
| 0:41.0 | I never wanted to be in front of people at all. I loved music. I always |
| 0:45.2 | wanted to be the guitar player, you know? And as I began to lead worship, and we began to travel |
| 0:51.3 | and do that over the years, I would just begin to share things from my life. |
| 0:56.7 | And as we would begin to share stories from my life, |
| 0:59.2 | even sometimes the stories that are not |
| 1:01.9 | the ones that you really want to share. It's the stories of how |
| 1:05.1 | you struggle and it's the stories of how you don't feel like enough. Those are the stories |
| 1:09.8 | that begin to connect with people. |
| 1:15.0 | Welcome to the Jesus Calling Podcast. All of us have experienced those times in our lives |
| 1:18.0 | where we didn't feel like enough. |
| 1:20.0 | Reviewing the list of our past mistakes and the litany of things we don't like about ourselves |
| 1:25.8 | can fill our minds with doubt and self-hatred. |
| 1:28.9 | But if we'll take a moment to ask God what is good about who we are, We'll be surprised to find our worth through |
| 1:34.4 | his perspective. Our guests this week, Christian singer, worship leader, Mike Weaver, |
| 1:39.8 | and pastor James Merritt, share how God showed them the truth about themselves |
| 1:44.4 | and why they matter, |
... |
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