Knowing Whose You are Makes all the Difference

Life will push us in so many directions. People push us to look a certain way, feel a certain way, and even to think a different way. Culture will tell you how to dress, how to smile, how to take selfies, and how to talk. Keeping up with life and trying to feel good about yourself can be exhausting. And all of this is before you even walk in the school doors!

Part of my routine over the past year has been reading books and devotionals. I can’t lie—reading is not my favorite thing to do. But, I can’t help to think where I would be right now if I hadn’t taken time to invest in myself. Presently, I’m doing this book with my best friend, Danilo. It’s called One God. One Plan. One Life. As I was reading it, one section spoke to me loud and clear.

The chapter is titled, “Knit Together with Love.” It gives the example of a knitted sweater that your mom or grandma may have made for you when you were little. Most of us have something that a loved one made for us that we treasure, and we don’t want to give it up. But, if you think about it, the reason that we don’t want to give it up has nothing to do with the functionality of the sweater or blanket. The reason it’s hard to part with is because it’s your mom or grandma who made it. That special sweater or blanket is a creation of a devoted mother who took time to knit every little piece of fabric. Every fiber expresses her love for you. The value of the garment is in the maker not the function.

The Bible says in Psalms 139:13, “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.” This is speaking of our Creator. We were knitted together in our mother’s womb. We were not mass-produced. We were not made on an assembly line. We are not an accident. God deliberately planned our lives for His pleasure. Our worth and value have nothing to do with what we do, but our value and worth comes from whose we are! “When God gazes upon you, He doesn’t see an ordinary lump of clay. He sees a beautiful work of art, uniquely molded and shaped according to His loving design.” (taken from One God. One Plan. One Purpose)

I am quoting this and encouraging you because I am not always strong in this area. Believe me, I have my days where I’m tired. I’m tired of having to deal with my reality—from waking up from my dreams in which I can see perfectly normal to realizing that it’s another day to deal with this constant reminder when I open my eyes. Sometimes, I can’t hold it in, and I am bursting at the seams to be angry and hurt. I am not always the one to talk about how I feel at the moment and express my feelings and disappointments to others. So, there are days where I can’t keep it in any longer, it hits me like a ton of bricks. But then here comes God’s Word—like a flood, He surrounds me with hope and assurance that He has never left me.

Somewhere, deep inside, I know that I will see again. This is the hope and promise He has for me. He always reminds me that He is a miracle-working God. I must remember whose I am—who I belong to. I must look in the mirror and speak to myself and encourage myself. And, even though I may wake up tomorrow and have to deal with this for a little while longer, my confidence is in my Creator—the one who fashioned me, knit me together and placed me on this earth for a purpose. I know that whatever God has planned for me is worth it—it’s even worth the wait.

Struggling with my appearance and my looks is a part of life. We all deal with it. We are all looking to feel accepted, loved, purposed, and needed. And when we don’t remember our value and our worth is in Him rather than what we do or who we please, then life can truly hit us. But, when you take time to invest His word in your heart, it makes all the difference! I encourage you to get an accountability partner. Sharpen each other. Challenge each other to learn God’s word and hide it in your heart. Believe me—on your worst days, His word will surface when you need it most and be the assurance you need to shake it off and just keep moving!

Danilo, thank you for being God’s reminder to me of how much God loves me and how amazing His plans is for my life.