Restoring Value

God's rescue doesn't just redeem our humanity; if we allow it to, it can also redeem the potentially negative and harmful ways we view ourselves." Fiona Soltes, "Ruth: Gleaning Hope", p. 96.

In a world where society and experience deems our value and how we see ourselves, it is difficult to remember the value we already possess – the perfect value we have in the eyes of He who created us.

1 Peter 2:9 states “We are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God.” Romans 8:17 states “Now if we are children, then we are heirs – heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.”

The Scriptures go on and on about our value through the eyes of our Creator without reserve. So… how is it that those who have hurt us seem to have power over our value? With every bad decision they make we immediately feel value as a person (woman) losing pulse whether consciously or subconsciously. When my daughter went through her 8 years of drug addiction it was not uncommon for you to meet me and within an hour you would have heard my mom resume – “We had her in church since birth, we are very active in her life, we disciplined her, we had her in youth group, etc…” and the accomplishments went on and on.

You see, that was my way of saying, “I need to tell you my value was there somewhere. I have lost my value because I have lost control.” Your value has nothing to do with your husband’s or children's choices. Your value is who God created you to be. God’s value doesn’t change when we sin. He remains the same all powerful God with the same value. Such is the same with our situation when someone wounds us. When they stray we may change how we see ourselves but it doesn’t change who we are in value.

Jennifer Rothschild is the author of "Fingerprints of God, Recognizing the Touch of God in Your Life.” She writes, “Value is determined by price paid. Christ paid the ultimate price with his life deeming us valuable enough to suffer and die for us. Even when we do not feel valuable, we still are. Even when we do not feel noticed, God’s eyes never leave us. Even when we do not feel his touch our lives reflect His hand. Even as the darkness surrounds us, we can be sure that He sees us.”

Just because we cannot feel the sun’s warmth on cloudy days doesn’t mean the sun has lost its value – its warmth. The clouds do not change the sun’s value. While our trus value cannot be changed through our circumstances, the way we see ourselves through our senses or emotions may change. The true food to maintain our healthy value is to choose to believe who God says we are apart from our emotions.

He formed us according to His image and He values and esteems us. Value comes from the creator. God assigns our value and worth apart from man’s approval. The challenge with people whose decisions strip us of our value is not to accept their lies about us but to remember our value as we relate to God.

We are who God says we are and our value is not defined by our circumstances.