I see you sitting at Vacation Bible School next to your friend. She questions why your legs get so much bigger than hers do when you sit down. I see you look and compare and take the information that you have, looking at these two sets of eight year old legs and decide that it must be because you’re too big. An innocent question asked by an innocent girl without a concept of what you would take from it.
Do you know how beautiful you are? How God made you in His image? Do you know that you’re not too big and are, in fact, exactly how God wanted you to be for his purpose?
I see you sitting in the pew at church with your youth choir friends. The girl sitting next to you looks at you and tells you you’re singing off key. I see you get embarrassed and stop singing, something you love. I see you over the next years worry and worry about whether the notes that you’re singing are right. And, even when you get selected for the elite choir in high school, wonder why, because you still hear her telling you that you’re singing off key.
Do you know that God made your voice? Do you know that she might have been insecure of her voice and so critiqued yours? Do you know that no teacher or adult ever told you that, just one eleven year old girl? Do you know that when you have children you’ll finally overcome your fear of not singing the right notes because your children tell you that your voice is beautiful and that’s all that matters?
I see many instances over your life when a peer tells you something and you take it as fact. You don’t question their motives or their innocence. You don’t wonder if it’s the truth or ask an adult for verification. You let the many, tiny, seemingly insignificant in their comments wear away at your confidence in your self. You take teasing from boys and friends personally. You become so insecure that you feel like everyone is always critiquing you (which now at 29 you can finally see as so incredibly self-involved).
Dear one, if I could go back and speak to you in these moments I would tell you so many things. But the most important would be:
That is one person’s opinion.
It may or may not be true.
And as long as you are serving God to the best of your ability, nothing else matters.
Easy to say with decades of insight. Easy to say when I’m rhetorically speaking to my younger self. Harder to put into practice, even today, with myself. Harder to believe the truths spoken in the Bible with absolute certainty that God did not make a mistake with me.
“Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us.”” Genesis 1:26a, New Living Translation
“Your adornment must not be merely external — braiding of the hair and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.” 1 Peter 3:3-4, New American Standard Bible
Convicting to hear myself say these words to my beautiful, wonderful daughter and wonder if I truly accept them all myself. Heartbreaking to think about her hearing things like this said about her and believing them without question. Impossible to counteract on my own, but with the word of God, hopefully I can plant the TRUTH of God in her heart and the hearts of her friends, her brother, and our sponsored children so that words spoken by others won’t pierce so deep.
“I will give thanks to you because I have been so amazingly and miraculously made. Your works are miraculous, and my soul is fully aware of this.” Psalm 139:14, GODS WORD Translation
“May our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.” 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17, NIV
“Consider this: The Father has given us his love. He loves us so much that we are actually called God’s dear children. And that’s what we are. For this reason the world doesn’t recognize us, and it didn’t recognize him either.” 1 John 3:1, GODS WORD Translation
God loves you, child, no matter what. The words that you hear spoken or read might not tell you that. In fact, they might tell you the exact opposite of that. But stay firmly planted in the truth of God’s word and He will help you weather outside criticism that can tear you down and will remind you that he created you for a purpose and he loves you!
I am taking part in Compassion’s Blog Month. There are many organizations that make a difference in the lives of children across the world. We have chosen to partner with Compassion to help make a difference in Jesus’ name. The goal of Blog Month is for the group of Compassion Bloggers across the blogosphere to write and encourage people to consider sponsoring a child through Compassion. You can find out more information about sponsorship here and can find children in need of sponsors here. Not everyone will be able to sponsor financially every month, but one time gifts are also helpful and prayers are coveted. If you have any questions about Compassion I can give you everything I know about it and get you in touch with others who know much more than me.
