He calls me loved
Our Worth In Christ
Our self worth begins with him
I remember when I was in high school. Some memories I can recall with accuracy; others have faded.
My self-esteem was low for any number of reasons or clouded self-perceptions. One of the few memories that still rears its ugly little head every now and again was having been bullied.
I was made fun of because I didn’t have nice clothes according to the high teenage standard set by some girls. More than once, somebody taunted me about my natural curls, and a few times, someone stuck a note to my back. That in of itself will make anyone’s self-esteem take a nosedive.
And a horrible recall was the time when I went to the extra help room you could go to if you were having trouble with a class. The room was small, and that day I was the only girl there. There were four boys. The teacher left the room to make copies, the boys called me names and made nasty remarks, one boy dropped his pants and showed me his private area. I was called names because I was busty on top.
When the teacher returned, she asked me to step out into the hall. She said she noticed it looked like I was crying and asked what was wrong. So tearfully, I told her. She was horrified. The boys were sent to the principal’s office and got in trouble. I didn’t have to return to that room again.
That was that, right?
Wrong. Needless to say, those formative years set me up for a lifelong roller coaster of low self-esteem.
Self-worth seems to be more fitting here. I went home from school crying on many occasions. I remember my mom cried with me; she was a woman of God and brought comfort to me. She would pray with me and for me.
Self-worth has been a lifelong struggle for me. Most of the time, our views or perceptions come from what other people tell us about ourselves. Jesus gave his own life by dying on the cross for us.
Wow! That in and of itself should tell us how Jesus values our worth to him. And this should be the only authority by which we view our own self-worth.
I’m not alone here. I know you’ve felt it too. I’m not good, skinny, pretty, rich, achieved, successful enough. And there’s more to add to the list.
If you were bullied, you probably remember feeling humiliated, hurt, small, and insignificant too. Jesus came to save us sinners, all of us. That means our bullies too.
In the same way, we were saved by His grace and anointed with his mercy. When we asked Him into our hearts and lives to be our Savior. Some of those bullies asked Him to be their Lord and Savior too.
We might never know which past bullies from our lives asked Him to be their Lord and Savior. And that’s okay. But God does. God is the only one who can soften hard hearts. And change lives. And that’s what’s essential, people turning to God. And those who did are no longer bullies; they have been adopted as sons and daughters by the king of the universe just like me.
It took time. Most of my adult life, as a matter of fact. To get over my poor self-worth. It wasn’t until I met Jesus head-on that my worth in my perception of myself changed.
He tells me…
Psalm 139:14 (NIV) “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
Ephesians 1:4–6 (NIV) tells us, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love, he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will–to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.”
In 1 Peter 2:9 (NIV), Peter tells us, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
Luke 12:7 (NIV) tells us that “In fact, even the hairs on your head are all numbered. Do not be afraid; you are more valuable than many sparrows.”
Isaiah 49:16 (NIV) reminds us that “See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.”
Therefore I know that I am loved, cherished, chosen, and called by name. I am valuable to Him. My self-worth began with him.
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