The Daily CHEW™
Moving God’s Love from Head to Heart for Christian Professionals
I received a text from a client that stopped me in my tracks: “It’s real! Just had a good cry. God met me so deeply. The thought of Jesus embracing the humiliation, shame and embarrassment of the Cross because he wanted me!!! He was King – he was supposed to be worshiped. Knowing he has been there, fully exposed…that belief strengthens me. I’m not stopping, but I do think this has just helped God’s love hit me at a deeper level just now. I will stay in all this for a while.”
This is what breakthrough looks like. Not just understanding theology, not just affirming doctrine, but encountering God’s love so powerfully that tears come, strength arrives, and something shifts at a level deeper than you’ve experienced before. This is the difference between knowing God loves you and experiencing that He wanted you so much He embraced shame, humiliation, and exposure on the Cross.
The King Who Chose Humiliation Because He Wanted You
Consider what actually happened at the Cross from Jesus’ perspective: He was King of Kings, deserving of worship, honor, and glory. Every angel bowed before Him. All creation existed for His pleasure. Yet He chose to be stripped naked, mocked publicly, spit upon, and executed as a criminal—not because He had to, but because He wanted you.
The writer of Hebrews captures this: “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2). The “joy set before Him” was YOU. You were worth the shame. You were worth the humiliation. You were worth the exposure.
When this truth moves from your head to your heart—when you encounter it at a level deeper than intellectual agreement—everything changes. The shame you carry loses its power because Jesus has been there, fully exposed, and He did it for you. The fear of humiliation weakens because the King embraced it to win you. The belief that you’re not worth loving shatters because God demonstrated that you were worth His worst moment.
Called to the Same Path: Being Made Like Jesus Is Greater Than Success
My client’s encounter went even deeper when he realized: “God is calling us to do the same thing that He called Jesus to do—we are being called into something so much bigger than ourselves. He is making us more like Jesus.”
Here’s the tension every Christian professional faces: We say we want to be like Jesus, but what we often want more is for the client meeting to go well, for the promotion to come through, for people to respect us. We want success more than we want to be shaped into Christ’s likeness. We want the comfort of avoiding shame more than we want the transformation that comes through embracing humiliation for the sake of love.
But consider this question: What could be greater than literally, over the course of your life, being shaped, changed, and informed more and more into the being that you will eventually be when God makes the new heavens and the new earth? What could be better than becoming the person God designed you to be from eternity—someone who looks like Jesus, loves like Jesus, and carries His character into every room you enter?
The Gospel offers something infinitely better than successful presentations and smooth client meetings—it offers transformation into the image of Christ. And that transformation often happens through the very things we’re trying to avoid: humiliation, exposure, weakness, and circumstances that strip away our self-sufficiency and force us to depend completely on God’s love.
CHEW On This™ in 3–5 Minutes: Encountering the Love That Transforms Us Into His Image
Confess (C) to God
“Father, here’s what I’m honestly feeling: I know theologically that Jesus died for me and that You’re making me like Him, but I confess I often want success more than I want transformation. I want the client meeting to go well more than I want to be shaped into Christ’s image. I need to encounter the reality that being made like Jesus is greater than any earthly achievement.”
Hear (H) from God in Scripture
“Father, what Scripture do You want me to wrestle with about being conformed to Jesus’ image?”
“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” (Romans 8:29)
“What is true about You and Your purpose for me? You’re not just saving me—You’re transforming me into the image of Jesus. You’re shaping me into the being I will be in the new heavens and new earth. This is Your plan from before time began.”
Exchange (E) with God
Option 1 (Beginner CHEWer):
“If I really believed God loves me as much as He loves Jesus, what would change right now?”
Option 2 (Intermediate CHEWer):
“If I really believed that God is calling me to the same path He called Jesus—embracing humiliation and exposure for the sake of love and transformation—how would that change what I actually want? Would I want the client meeting to go well more than I want to be made like Jesus?”
Option 3 (Advanced CHEWer):
“If I really believed that being shaped into Christ’s image over the course of my life is greater than any success, promotion, or human approval, how would that change how I view difficult circumstances? How would that change what I’m actually pursuing? If God is making me into the being I will be in the new creation—someone who looks like Jesus—what could be more valuable than that transformation, even when it comes through things I want to avoid?”
Today, Father, I don’t want to settle for successful meetings when You’re offering transformation into Christ’s image. Help me want what You want—to be made like Jesus, no matter what that requires.
Walk (W) with the Holy Spirit
“Holy Spirit, please help me value transformation over success:”
- “When I’m tempted to prioritize success over Christlikeness, remind me that being made like Jesus is infinitely greater.”
- “Show me how You’re using the very circumstances I’m trying to avoid—humiliation, exposure, weakness—to shape me into Christ’s image.”
- “Help me see that You’re preparing me for the new heavens and new earth, shaping me into the person I will be for eternity.”
- “Give me the courage to embrace the same path Jesus walked—choosing love and obedience over comfort and approval.”
“Holy Spirit, make me more like Jesus, whatever that takes.”
Worship: Staying in the Encounter Until It Transforms You
This is the invitation: Don’t rush past encounters with God’s love. When something hits you at a deeper level, when tears come because you’ve encountered truth that goes beyond understanding, when you realize “It’s real!”—stay there. Linger. Let it soak in. Return to it again and again until it strengthens you in ways theology alone never could.
The King embraced shame because He wanted you. That’s not just a sermon point—it’s a life-altering reality. And He’s calling you to the same path—not because He wants you to suffer, but because He’s making you into the person you were always meant to be: someone who looks like Jesus, loves like Jesus, and will live forever as the image of the Son.
What could be greater than that?
Community + Resources
Community: Share your encounters with God’s love with others who understand that breakthrough happens when truth moves from head to heart here.
Want More?
The Daily CHEW™ | Make CHEWing a daily rhythm
Select Resources:
- Pursuing the Encounter: How God’s Love Breaks Strongholds That Won’t Budge
- Going Deeper: How to Move Beyond Surface-Level CHEW to Heart-Level Breakthrough
- Going All-In: Why Pursuing God’s Love Unlocks Your Boldest Life
With you on the journey,
Ryan
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