"I came into this world unwelcomed, and I'll leave it the same way—never fully wanted or chosen."
How it sounds in your head: You're staring at mortality now—friends getting sick, parents dying or gone, and you're haunted by the thought that you entered unwelcomed and you'll exit the same way. No grand celebration at your arrival, no tears at your departure, just tolerated presence from start to finish. You're in your fifties and the question is louder than ever: did anyone ever actually WANT me here?
"The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing."
-- Zephaniah 3:17Enemy's ultimate goal: to convince you that your entire existence from birth to death is unwanted, erasing any sense of divine purpose or celebration over your life.
You can't remember ever feeling CELEBRATED—not at birth, not at milestones, maybe not even at your own wedding. The absence of enthusiastic welcome has followed you like a shadow, and now facing the exit, you expect more of the same.
Born in PAIN (his name means 'pain'), his mother named him after her suffering, marked from birth by trauma and sorrow, seemingly cursed by his own NAME. He cried out to God for blessing—and God GRANTED his request, expanded his territory, kept him from harm—the one named 'Pain' became MORE HONORABLE than his brothers, proving that how you ENTER doesn't determine how you EXIT.
I REFUSE the lie that I came unwelcomed or will leave unwelcomed. IT IS WRITTEN that the Lord my God REJOICES over me with gladness and REJOICES over me with SINGING. I am not tolerated; I am SERENADED. Heaven SANG at my arrival and will SING at my homecoming. IT IS WRITTEN in Psalm 139:17-18 that God's thoughts toward me are precious and outnumber the sand—He is OBSESSED with me. I stand in the BARAK blessing—blessed coming in and blessed going out, the head not the tail, above only. I am not the unwelcomed one; I am the CELEBRATED one, sung over by God from birth to eternity.
The Father has been SINGING over you since before your first breath—rejoicing with gladness, quieting you with love, unable to contain His JOY at your existence. While you've felt unwelcomed by earth, Heaven has been throwing a PARTY, and when you come HOME, the Father will be running toward you with the robe and ring, still SINGING the song He started the day you were born.