I Can’t Lift My Head

I felt ugly when I was young. I did not see any beauty in me. I had low self-esteem. I was not confident. And I did not think I was special. I did not feel smart or intelligent. I felt shy and vulnerable. I did not want to be around people. I thought there was nothing likeable in me that would draw people to me.

Have you ever felt like I felt? As I grew older, I began to learn what God says about me in His Word. These things are true about you too: It is written in the Bible that you are wonderfully made. God made you in His image—to reflect His glory and goodness. God is wonderful, kind, patient, beautiful…and because you are made in His image, you get to be those things too. You are one of a kind. You have a beautiful nature. You are unique. You are special because the God who created the universe is the God who perfectly made you, and He loves you.

However, we live in a world broken by sin, where we are all broken, and we all do wrong. Sin separates us from our loving Creator and distorts the good way God made us. But Jesus came to make us new. Through His life, death, and resurrection, we can be reunited with God. As Jesus’ forgiven followers, we get to discover how God truly made us when we abide in Him (John 15:4-5). His Holy Spirit is in us, transforming us to be like Christ and restoring us to the ways God made us to be.

God has planted talents and abilities in you that you may shine and be a blessing to others (1 Peter 4:10-11). Through Jesus, He has given you self-control so that you can make good decisions (2 Timothy 1:7). He has also given you a kind, loving, caring, considerate, gentle, joyful, and forgiving heart (Galatians 5:22-23). You have a body that can do good things for you and other people. You have senses that were made to behold the beauty of nature and of others around you. And God has brought you to places where you can make a difference.

Know that God made you with a purpose, and you can reflect His love to others. You were made wonderful so that you may (as the Westminster Shorter Catechism says) glorify God and enjoy Him forever. • Golda Dilema

• Do you sometimes look down on yourself? When it’s hard to believe that what God says about you is true or see the good ways He’s made you, who is a trusted Christian you can talk to?

• How does knowing the way Jesus views you affect the way you view others?

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14a (NIV)

Read Verses:

Exodus 14:14; Psalm 10:16-18; Romans 5:6; 2 Corinthians 4:6-18