"You are precious to me, I have given you a special place of honor. I love you." ~Isaiah 43:4 (a&b)
There was a season (a long season) in my life when I didn't recognize my worth. I'm not speaking of the worth I held to people but the worth I held with God. I did so many things that hurt me, and with each step I took down a variety of wrong paths, I began to feel more and more unworthy of God's love and grace. It took me a long time to understand that because I am God's masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10), I am priceless.
Miriam-Webster defines the word priceless as: having a value beyond any price.
That describes it well enough, but an even greater expression of that word was what Jesus did for us on the cross!
Jesus thought that our value was so high that he paid the ultimate sacrifice, which was priceless, to show us just how much God values us. The sad part about His sacrifice is not that He died, but the travesty is that we overlook His sacrifice; therefore, overlooking just how worthy He found us to be. We are always searching for our worth beyond the sacred act of the Cross.
I'm not going to talk about any of the material things we think we have to have to prove that we are someone of value; that's a given. Rather, I want to spend some time speaking on the things that we think about ourselves and what we give away to others trying to convince them that we are someone worthy of their time and love.
I'll share some of the things I gave away searching for my value in every other relationship rather than my relationship with God.
I gave my heart: It's not a bad thing when we give our hearts to another, but when we are giving our hearts while seeking validation of our worth in others, it can prove to be quite detrimental. So often we seek our identities in relationships with others. The truth of the matter is before we enter into any relationship we should already know who we are and how we should be treated in that relationship. How we identify with who we are should be more about Whose image we were created in (Genesis 1:27) and how we expect to be treated should be nothing short of being shown glimpses of God's love towards us. God loves us so much, and that, dear one, makes your price so high that only someone who seeks to love in a way that reflects the love of God will be able to afford the luxury of having your heart.
I gave my mind: It's so easy to spend time thinking about your flaws until those things are what you allow to define who you are instead of understanding the thoughts of the One Who created you to be the masterpiece that you are. Don't you know that you are beloved of God? The moment that you ask Christ to be the Savior of your soul God calls you His beloved (Romans 9:25).
We also spend so much time thinking of the negative words and actions of others. Recalling these things makes us question the value of our worth. Has anyone ever beat you down so much emotionally with their words that you began to believe their lies? Have you ever been physically abused and the abuser made you feel that the abuse was your fault? Has anyone who promised to be committed to you ever broken your heart by being unfaithful to their words? When someone you love so much does any of the things I just mentioned, it makes you question your value and it hurts to think that you weren't good enough. You have to know, though, that God doesn't view you as not being good enough. In fact, when He created you specifically, God saw that you were "good" (Genesis 1:31a).
I gave my body: I engaged in sex without a man having to "put a ring on it". I place no blame on anyone other than myself. I really was so busy seeking love that I didn't ever consider the fact that my value was not in the sex I was giving; instead, what made me priceless was the sincere love I desired to give from my heart. Furthermore, it wasn't until l seriously decided to live life as a "God chaser" that I understood that each time I had sex with someone that I hadn't made vows before God with, those moments were killing the uniqueness of one day sharing that priceless gift with the one to whom I would say "I do". Here's a truth moment: when your significant other, if you are just in a dating relationship, is willing to walk with you in abstinence you'll know that he or she is in love with your heart and character instead of the pleasure of experiencing your body. Now that, my friend, is priceless.
The journey I had to travel to see myself the way that God sees me has been the most exciting journey that I've ever taken. It didn't require me to spend money on travel expenses. It did, however, take me a while to get there, and I opted to take the scenic route. On this journey God helped me to identify the root cause of why I couldn't recognize my value and why I gave my priceless treasures away.
The journey took me to some very painful memories, but it also brought to mind some very beautiful moments that I know God had orchestrated to pull me closer to an understanding of my worth in Him. The journey took me to some very shameful memories, but it also drove me past the very moment that I accepted God's grace and forgiveness.
Accepting His grace and forgiveness was the pivotal moment that helped me to begin to see the value God places in me. Who else would wait so many years with patience and extend a hand to me with no hesitancy after I took Him for granted but God? That let's me know just how much I mean to Him. He took time away from the sheep that seemed to have stayed in line just to wait for the misguided one who fell behind. Priceless!
The journey I took to realize the true value I hold took a little time to travel, but I can honestly say that I have arrived. There are moments when memories of my past creep into my mind and try to make me remember that feeling of worthlessness, but those are the moments that I cling tight to what God says about me and what Christ endured for me on the Cross.
God truly wants us to know the value we hold in His heart. Here's the thing; no matter what we do or what others do to us, we can never be devalued to God. When He allowed Jesus to die on the Cross for our sins, He did that because He knew we would do some things in life that would be less than His best for us. Still, those things never defaced our value with Him. What those things did was made us feel like we were completely blemished in the sight of God. Therefore, we were pulled further and further away from the truth that God loves us.
If you are questioning who you are to God and how He sees you, I invite you to consider taking a little journey of your own. I can't promise that it will be a journey full of fun while trying to reach your destination, but I can promise that when you have arrived there you will have more insight as to who you are and just how precious a jewel you are. As you travel along your journey ask God to heal you of the scars that want to tell you that you are unworthy of anything good. As you take each step, keep focusing on what lies ahead. Even when the negative voices in your head try to tell you that you won't find what you're looking for, don't stop moving forward and be deliberate in each step you take. Keep walking my friend, keep walking...do you see the brightness of the light you are approaching? That's the radiance of God's love beckoning you to Him. You're almost there, move forward...now do you see that? Yep, you're staring into the very heart of God and entering into the vastness of His love for you. Now that you are closer, I am sure that you have fallen to your knees as you stare at the sight before you. Yes, that's the sight of Jesus on the Cross all those years ago. If you will now open your heart and listen closely you can hear Him speaking to you (right as He is taking His last breath) saying, "It is for you that I am doing this because to our Father and to me, you are priceless!"
Miriam-Webster defines the word priceless as: having a value beyond any price.
That describes it well enough, but an even greater expression of that word was what Jesus did for us on the cross!
Jesus thought that our value was so high that he paid the ultimate sacrifice, which was priceless, to show us just how much God values us. The sad part about His sacrifice is not that He died, but the travesty is that we overlook His sacrifice; therefore, overlooking just how worthy He found us to be. We are always searching for our worth beyond the sacred act of the Cross.
I'm not going to talk about any of the material things we think we have to have to prove that we are someone of value; that's a given. Rather, I want to spend some time speaking on the things that we think about ourselves and what we give away to others trying to convince them that we are someone worthy of their time and love.
I'll share some of the things I gave away searching for my value in every other relationship rather than my relationship with God.
I gave my heart: It's not a bad thing when we give our hearts to another, but when we are giving our hearts while seeking validation of our worth in others, it can prove to be quite detrimental. So often we seek our identities in relationships with others. The truth of the matter is before we enter into any relationship we should already know who we are and how we should be treated in that relationship. How we identify with who we are should be more about Whose image we were created in (Genesis 1:27) and how we expect to be treated should be nothing short of being shown glimpses of God's love towards us. God loves us so much, and that, dear one, makes your price so high that only someone who seeks to love in a way that reflects the love of God will be able to afford the luxury of having your heart.
I gave my mind: It's so easy to spend time thinking about your flaws until those things are what you allow to define who you are instead of understanding the thoughts of the One Who created you to be the masterpiece that you are. Don't you know that you are beloved of God? The moment that you ask Christ to be the Savior of your soul God calls you His beloved (Romans 9:25).
We also spend so much time thinking of the negative words and actions of others. Recalling these things makes us question the value of our worth. Has anyone ever beat you down so much emotionally with their words that you began to believe their lies? Have you ever been physically abused and the abuser made you feel that the abuse was your fault? Has anyone who promised to be committed to you ever broken your heart by being unfaithful to their words? When someone you love so much does any of the things I just mentioned, it makes you question your value and it hurts to think that you weren't good enough. You have to know, though, that God doesn't view you as not being good enough. In fact, when He created you specifically, God saw that you were "good" (Genesis 1:31a).
I gave my body: I engaged in sex without a man having to "put a ring on it". I place no blame on anyone other than myself. I really was so busy seeking love that I didn't ever consider the fact that my value was not in the sex I was giving; instead, what made me priceless was the sincere love I desired to give from my heart. Furthermore, it wasn't until l seriously decided to live life as a "God chaser" that I understood that each time I had sex with someone that I hadn't made vows before God with, those moments were killing the uniqueness of one day sharing that priceless gift with the one to whom I would say "I do". Here's a truth moment: when your significant other, if you are just in a dating relationship, is willing to walk with you in abstinence you'll know that he or she is in love with your heart and character instead of the pleasure of experiencing your body. Now that, my friend, is priceless.
The journey I had to travel to see myself the way that God sees me has been the most exciting journey that I've ever taken. It didn't require me to spend money on travel expenses. It did, however, take me a while to get there, and I opted to take the scenic route. On this journey God helped me to identify the root cause of why I couldn't recognize my value and why I gave my priceless treasures away.
The journey took me to some very painful memories, but it also brought to mind some very beautiful moments that I know God had orchestrated to pull me closer to an understanding of my worth in Him. The journey took me to some very shameful memories, but it also drove me past the very moment that I accepted God's grace and forgiveness.
Accepting His grace and forgiveness was the pivotal moment that helped me to begin to see the value God places in me. Who else would wait so many years with patience and extend a hand to me with no hesitancy after I took Him for granted but God? That let's me know just how much I mean to Him. He took time away from the sheep that seemed to have stayed in line just to wait for the misguided one who fell behind. Priceless!
The journey I took to realize the true value I hold took a little time to travel, but I can honestly say that I have arrived. There are moments when memories of my past creep into my mind and try to make me remember that feeling of worthlessness, but those are the moments that I cling tight to what God says about me and what Christ endured for me on the Cross.
God truly wants us to know the value we hold in His heart. Here's the thing; no matter what we do or what others do to us, we can never be devalued to God. When He allowed Jesus to die on the Cross for our sins, He did that because He knew we would do some things in life that would be less than His best for us. Still, those things never defaced our value with Him. What those things did was made us feel like we were completely blemished in the sight of God. Therefore, we were pulled further and further away from the truth that God loves us.
If you are questioning who you are to God and how He sees you, I invite you to consider taking a little journey of your own. I can't promise that it will be a journey full of fun while trying to reach your destination, but I can promise that when you have arrived there you will have more insight as to who you are and just how precious a jewel you are. As you travel along your journey ask God to heal you of the scars that want to tell you that you are unworthy of anything good. As you take each step, keep focusing on what lies ahead. Even when the negative voices in your head try to tell you that you won't find what you're looking for, don't stop moving forward and be deliberate in each step you take. Keep walking my friend, keep walking...do you see the brightness of the light you are approaching? That's the radiance of God's love beckoning you to Him. You're almost there, move forward...now do you see that? Yep, you're staring into the very heart of God and entering into the vastness of His love for you. Now that you are closer, I am sure that you have fallen to your knees as you stare at the sight before you. Yes, that's the sight of Jesus on the Cross all those years ago. If you will now open your heart and listen closely you can hear Him speaking to you (right as He is taking His last breath) saying, "It is for you that I am doing this because to our Father and to me, you are priceless!"