Sunday, May 16, 2010

What’s So GREAT About You?

A Different Kind of Devotional
by Suzie Johnson


“How great is the love the Father has lavished on us,
that we should be called children of God!
And that is what we are!”~~1John 3:1

Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, there lived a girl named Rose who felt like nobody loved her. She wasn’t pretty, she didn’t sing well, and she never measured up to the dreams she had for herself. She often dreamed she was Cinderella and that she’d be rescued by a handsome prince who would love her just the way she was. But when her prince came along, Rose still didn’t feel like she belonged. The only one she felt comfortable enough to be herself with was her baby boy who loved her in that unconditional way only babies can love.
Timid, shy, and fearful of what people would think of her, Rose tended to be a loner. Then one day she met Lily. Lily was pretty, full of confidence, and had oodles of friends. Rose admired Lily, and was surprised when Lily seemed to like her as she was. She made Rose feel special. Rose didn’t have to be anybody but herself when she was with Lily.

One day Rose confessed her feelings to Lily. She was ugly. She couldn’t stand to have other people look at her for fear of what they might be thinking. Rose didn’t love herself, and didn’t understand how anyone else could love her either.

Not long after, Rose received a beautiful card in the mail. Inside was written, “Good things about Rose.” It listed qualities she never considered as her own. Did Lily really see her that way?


When Rose found the courage to ask, Lily explained how much God loves her; that she is His child; how valuable she is to Him. And for the first time in her life, Rose felt there might actually be something worthwhile about herself.
Beloved
Precious
Treasured
His child
Lily encouraged Rose to look beyond the way others might think of her, and see the unconditional love placed upon her by her Heavenly Father. A love so deep and so great, He provided a way for her to be with Him forevermore.

Once Rose was able to see herself through Lily’s eyes, and then through God’s eyes, she was able to take a giant step forward and follow her dreams. She still struggles from time to time with feelings of being unaccepted, unworthy. But then she remembers her Father in Heaven and how much He loves her. Her worth no longer comes from how she perceives others might see her. It comes from the knowledge that nothing can mean more than to be treasured by God, to be His precious child, to be His beloved.

For some, especially women, it’s difficult to say you love yourself. It’s hard to even say you like yourself. A lot of people feel that to admit such thoughts would be boastful, conceited. But in order to give yourself fully, to be everything God intends for you to be, sometimes you have to take a step forward and admit maybe, just maybe, there’s something about yourself you can like.

Look in the mirror. Who are you? Maybe you’re not pretty, maybe you can’t sing well, or you’re not good at something you’ve always wanted to do. Does He love you less? Of course not. You are His child, His creation; loved with an unfailing, unselfish love.

Learn to love yourself and see yourself through God’s eyes. You’ll find it doesn’t matter what others think of you. It only matters what He thinks of you. Then you can step forward in the confidence of His love and shine. You can become the person that God, in His infinite wisdom and love, intends for you to be.



“We are God’s workmanship…”~~Ephesians 2:10

Dictionary.com describes workmanship as the art of skill of a workman; the product of labor and skill. Through scripture we know God is this workman, this artist. He labored over us and created us with his artistic skill.

How wonderful to be crafted by His hands, made in his image. Armed with that knowledge, we can put aside our insecurities and face the world knowing we’re treasured by our Creator.

Is it really that simple? Yes, it really is. But not everyone has a Lily in their life to show them, so look to the Scriptures and to Jesus to find the truth for yourself.


“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” ~~Psalm 139:14


“We are precious in his sight!”~~Isaiah 43:4-5


“He has engraved us upon the palms of His hand.”~~Isaiah 49:16

What is it you like about yourself? Can you dare go so far as to say there is something great about yourself? Something you love? We would love it if you feel comfortable sharing it with us. But if not—if you could just write it down for yourself, you’ll be taking a huge step toward finding the confidence you need to achieve God’s dream for you.

pictures courtesy of http://www.sxc.hu/

13 comments:

  1. Hi Suzie!
    I'm checking in at 6:30.

    What a beautiful tie in to our theme and such a simple, yet beautifully presented truth. It brought tears to my eyes. No matter how much we believe these verses and that we are special, the enemy waits to plant doubts in our mind at every opportunity.

    I think it becomes easier as we age to see what is special about ourselves because we stop putting the emphasis on looks and focus more on the things that make us who we are.
    Indeed there is no one in this world of millions that is like you or me. When the God of the universe can take the time to touch my life in a personal way with the most personal of blessings, then I am reminded of how much He loves me. And if He loves me that much . . .

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  2. Beautiful, Susie.

    Even when we can think of stuff about ourselves that we like. Why is it so hard to admit it to anyone. It's like we think humility required blindness. Really humility is knowing that those good things in us were authored by God and not by our own power.

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  3. Great words, Suzie! That mirrors my own spiritual journey. In fact, many of those verses I kept with me on cards so that when those thoughts of unworthiness washed over me I could read again the truths of who am in Christ.

    I love Lisa's words, too, that "true humility is knowing that those good things in us were authored by God and not our own power." So very, very true!

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  4. Lovely post. I would have to say I like about myself the fact that I urge myself to keep growing and learning. Even tho Im upper middle aged, I still love learning. I also love sharing what I have learned with others.

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  5. G'morning Deb. My. You're up about an hour after I went to bed. Of course I am on the other side of the country.

    You're so right. That old enemy is lurking around ready to sow seeds of doubt in our hearts. So we have to figure out a way to beat him. Don't listen to him. Cling to the truth that we are God's unique and precious creations.

    Happy Sunday!

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  6. Lisa, oh, Lisa. What a lovely quote you've given me. I love it. You are so wise, my friend.

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  7. Oh, D'Ann, keeping verses on cards is such a great idea. Especially if you're trying to afirm their truth on your heart. The mirror, the wall by your bed, near your computer. What a wonderful idea.

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  8. Thank you, Jan. And I'm so happy you stopped by today. Hunger for learning is such a great quality. I think learning keeps us energized, keeps our minds active, and keeps drawing us closer to the Lord with our newfound knowledge. And isn't it so awesome that each time we read a passage, we can learn something different?

    Thank you for sharing. I hope you have a blessed day.

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  9. Suzie, I loved this! Thanks for sharing this bit of God-given wisdom. I am definitely going to do this exercise later and list a few things I like about myself. They're attributes which stem from the Lord, not of my own making... that quote of Lisa's was stellar!

    thanks, Suzie!

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  10. Suzie, beautiful post! I love Lisa's thoughts on humility and I appreciate all the words of wisdom I hear at the Inkwell :-)

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  11. Hi Susie D! I know you can find lots of positive attributes about yourself. So I expect to hear that your list was very long!

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  12. Thanks Narelle! I agree, Lisa is very wise and she's given us the quotable-quote of the day. We are so lucky to have so many wise ladies here. But you, Narelle, you are wise, too, so don't sell yourself short by any means.

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  13. Love the post, Suzie. Lots to think about, too.

    What I really like about myself is that people seem to feel better after talking to me. Many times they even go away laughing. :D

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