Life Ministries

"Self-esteem"
    Our American culture especially, places extreme value on outer appearance. We value youth, beauty, athletic ability, intelligence, education, wealth and fame. Self-esteem today seems to be tied to our abilities. But what happens when you have it all and lose it. What happens when Superman becomes a wheelchair man? What happens when a supermodel gains some super weight or gets super old? What happens when a super intelligent person has a stroke? What happens when a superstar ends up in jail or addicted to drugs? What happens when you have a super career and lose it? What then? Where do you get your feelings of esteem and personal worth, when everything on which you have based your value has vanished? The world wants to single us out according to these things…while God desires that we find our self-esteem according to who we are according to His Word and who we were created to be. An accurate view of yourself comes from an understanding of God’s view of who you are. If your feelings of self-worth are based on how you see yourself, or how others see you, then you are hooked to the wrong star.
    Inferiority is just another form of pride. It is feeling bad that you are not as good or better than others. Pride is a matter of being self-focused. A person who feels constantly inferior is merely someone who is focused upon themselves. As we are being transformed we turn our focus away from ourselves and focus on the Potter. He tells us “Don’t worry about what you can’t do, concentrate on what you can do. Don’t worry about whether it is as good as someone else can do it, do the best you can do.” What if only very best tennis player would enter the contest. What if no one else would come to Wimbledon because they knew they were not the top seed? What if only the best preachers preached? What if only the best singer sang? What if only the wealthiest person gave? What if only the best teacher taught?
    We are to be full of confidence, because God has made us and has called us to serve him. There is no one else like you in the world — God has seen to that. No one else has your particular personality and gifts. You look the way you do because that is the way the Potter wanted you to look. You have exactly the amount of potential intelligence and ability as he planned for you to have. There will always be someone with more than you have, but there will never be anyone exactly like you. You are his gift to the world, exactly as you are. You can throw down his gifts to you, or you can pick up those abilities and develop them to the full. You can try to live in your own strength, or you can lean upon his strength for the full development of what he has given you.
    What I am trying to say is this: One day your looks will change. Your abilities will diminish. You will not be able to think or remember as you once did. You may lose friends or even lose your spouse. What then? On what will you base your self-esteem? If your self-esteem is based on your looks, your intelligence, education, youth, or abilities then your self-esteem will be shattered. The only thing that will last — the only thing that no one can take from you — is your relationship with God and your value to him. All your feelings about yourself, others, and life must come from him or you will live in disillusionment and despair. This relationship will guide you in your youth and sustain you later in life as well. It will provide you with the meaning and fulfillment that only God can give. It does not matter if you are a spaghetti pot or a tea pot or a crock-pot or a beautiful flower pot.
    The story is told of an American tourist in Paris who picked up an amber necklace in a trinket shop. When he arrived at New York and went through customs he was shocked at the high duty he had to pay. When he came home, he had the necklace appraised, and the jeweler told him he would give $25,000 for the necklace. He was stunned and suspected that there was a reason for the offer. He took the necklace to an expert who appraised it at an astronomical amount. When he asked the appraiser what made the necklace so valuable, he told him to look into the magnifying glass and see for himself. When he placed his eye next to the glass, he saw an inscription which read: “From Napoleon Bonaparte to Josephine.” It was the name on the necklace that gave it extraordinary worth.
    Inscribed on your life is the name of your Owner. He has made you with his own hands and written his name across your life. Your value is found in that inscription. You belong to him and he wants to use your life. He has made you and your are his. You are unique. You are special because you are special to him. No one else can take your place in his heart. And neither can anyone else take your place in this world.