Does the thought ever sweep over you that you are not very important? Perhaps you feel that if you were to disappear off the face of the earth, no one would really miss you.

Now, everyone has their bad days, even the most self-assured person. For such a one, occasional periods of gloomy introspection may be just that—occasional. But there are many people, and you may be one of them, who are sincerely convinced of their lack of value. Perhaps you feel that you are not as attractive as your friends. You may have a skin problem, or a weight problem, or your hair may be mousy. It could be that you are too shy to make friends easily, or that you feel you just don’t have what it takes to converse well with people. It is easy to focus on what you perceive as your limitations and to get the feeling that you are just no good. Perhaps you have a circle of acquaintances and co-workers you interact with regularly, but do they really notice you? Sometimes you wonder.

What is the answer to all of this? Should we try to convince you that you really are attractive, or clever, or widely noticed? The fact is, there is probably some truth in your personal assessment of yourself. True, when you are feeling down, you tend to exaggerate the negative and overlook the positive. No doubt, you fare as well as many others do in some respects and perhaps even excel in certain areas. However, positive thinking will take you only so far. What you need is to get a new perspective on value. Instead of evaluating how man looks at you, consider this: How does God look at you? Do you suppose that God loves the handsome, but rejects the plain? Does God love the talented few while having no interest in the ordinary majority? Does God favor the bright and energetic over the average and weak? Of course not!

Ponder for a moment why a mother loves her child. Is it because he is cute? clever? well-behaved? While all mothers are proud of their cute, clever, and well-behaved children, that really isn’t why they love them. If it were, what would they feel toward their plain, slow, occasionally naughty children? Or what about those children who suffer from some kind of physical or mental disability? We have all seen mothers who love such children fully as much as their healthy, unimpaired children.

The reason a mother loves her child has nothing to do with physical attributes or mental achievements. But while most mothers might not be able to express it eloquently, you might hear them whisper something like this to their son or daughter: “I love you, not because you are cute or smart or talented, but just because you’re you!” Somehow, a mother knows that her child is precious. A Christian mother knows that God has entrusted her with something of inestimable worth—a human soul, made in the image and likeness of God.

And that, my friend, is precisely the reason you should not demean yourself. In God’s sight, you are of great worth. Since God chose to create you, in His sight you are of great value. God knows all about you. He created you with your special combination of skills, personality traits, appearance, strengths, and weaknesses. Do you know why? For His purposes and for His glory. Revelation 4:11 says, “For thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.” That includes you! God has a job for you to do, just the way you are. As you accept this and endeavor to do the best you can for Him, external factors will cease to concern you.

God loves you just the way He made you. Be content with that for now. But remember, whatever your lot in this life, it is just for a moment. You have the opportunity to be in Heaven someday with our Lord forever. There, you and I will have perfect bodies, minds, and spirits. And they will be ours throughout all of eternity!

Gordon Sletmoe is a member of the Apostolic Faith Church in Grants Pass, Oregon.