You're Worth Something

Have you ever heard about how valuable you are? You are important because God needs you.

That might sound strange-why would God need us? Some people think God is like an old man who made the earth a long time ago and doesn't even think about us anymore. But that isn't who God is. He is so much more than a person. He is infinite good, universal Love, all-power. All the love there is in the world is just a small expression of how good God is.

If you have ever loved anything, however small, you know that means you want only what is good for it. The same is true with God. He knows us and wants only what is good for us, His children. We are made in God's likeness to express His love. So it's natural to feel loved and valued.

Christ Jesus said, according to the Holy Bible, "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. . . . Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows" (Matthew 10:29, 31). This shows a little bit how God takes care of us, no matter who or where we are.

In our very being, we express God's own nature, and we are necessary to Him. Mary Baker Eddy, who studied the Bible thoroughly and through this discovered Christian Science, said, "God, without the image and likeness of Himself, would be a nonentity, or Mind unexpressed. He would be without a witness or proof of His own nature" (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 303). As God's image, or witness, you express Him through love, intelligence, peacefulness, happiness, and many other good qualities. In this expression we each show the nature of God, wherever we are.

To know you are valued by God is to stop feeling you have to depend on people or things to make you happy. You can be as happy in a desert, without anyone else around, as you can be when you are surrounded by friends, because joy comes from being related to God, not from human conditions. Your value to God is not measured by how fast you can run, whether or not you live on the rich side of town, what kind of friends you have (or don't have), or any measurements like that. Your self-worth is measured by what is in your heart.

When you feel love or joy or peace, you are feeling goodness-you're knowing God. That's when you are most able to do good. If, on the other hand, you are filled with fear, anger, or frustration, you are carrying a burden that can make you feel awful about yourself. And that's when it seems that you aren't of much value. If there were nothing that could be done about this, it would be awful. But the fact is that you don't need to carry that burden! God never gave it to you.

I learned this not too long ago. I had done something I thought was really stupid. In fact, I spent almost every waking hour telling myself how stupid I was. I sure wasn't finding a solution to my problem.

Then one day I realized that I would never get anywhere by continuing like that. Instead, I began to remember what we've been discussing-that I was made in God's likeness. I was His intelligent image. Within a couple of days the whole problem was solved.

What had happened? When I began to consider that I was created to express the love, joy, and intelligence of God toward myself and others, I was bringing myself back into line with the facts. Because I understood that I was the likeness of God, I behaved intelligently. As a result, what happened had to be good. That's an example of how understanding our value to God is definitely practical.

You have this kind of help available to you. When you have a problem, keep in mind that God looks on your heart, not on your material accomplishments, and that from Him you have goodness, the ability to help others, and intelligence. He is the source of all good and is continuously giving you these qualities. When you understand this to be true, you find the help you need. You feel God's love for you and know that you are valuable to Him.

You can find other articles like this one in the Christian Science Sentinel, a weekly magazine.