If you google “self-worth: there are over 33 million results. It’s apparently very important and a lot of people talk about it. The second result is from positivepsychology, and asks the question, “what is self-worth?”. For all the discussion, it seems strange that there is still confusion about it. A lot of other similar ‘self’ words are popular; ‘self-confidence’, the more recent ‘self-compassion’, and the always reliable, ‘self-esteem’. Some of these address the emotional state of mind, but self-worth refers to our value.
What determines the value of a person? If you donate blood, someone might say that blood is worth quite a lot (depending on your blood type). A plasma donation is worth anywhere between $20-$50. Someone compiled a list of the major body parts which range from $10 for an ear, to $1M for a heart, the total cost arriving at $45M. Most life insurance plans value a human life at around $100,000K (hmmmm…). Usually, we determine the value of a thing based on what someone will pay for it. Obviously, someone needing a transplant considers you more valuable than an insurance company!
Most would say a human life is priceless. How can you place a market value on your life?
Someone did…
For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
– Mark 10:45
I had a client that liked to watch Youtube channels of people recording themselves while shopping second hand. They list their items in online stores like Ebay or Poshmark, and they show what kind of profit they made on things that look like junk to me. A stuffed animal which was missing an eye, sold for over $200 dollars! Clearly, the value of something is determined by what someone will pay for it.
Consider the verse above and follow my thought process:
God paid Jesus as a ransom for you.
Jesus is God.
So, God paid God for you.
Therefore, You are worth God, to God.
God almighty thought you were worth his blood, because He gave his life to purchase yours. I know that sounds like it is disrespectful to God. I don’t mean we are equal to God or actually worth God:
Today we had a friend over who has two little girls. It gave me an opportunity to dig out some fun items from our kids’ childhood. Think of the things in your house that are most valuable to you; they are probably not the most expensive things you own. Maybe a utensil your mom gave you before she passed away, or a piece of clothing one of your children wore as a toddler. Someone else wouldn’t pay much for it, but you wouldn’t part with it!
Do we sometimes sell ourselves short because we see ourselves as not valuable? We, in turn, sell the kingdom of God short because we do not see ourselves as capable. Sometimes, we neglect to say something to a friend about their relationship with God. What does that say about how I consider their value?
Or how about stepping up and taking on a ministry at church?
I’ve posted about my parents’ decision to uproot and move to the other side of the globe, despite being well established in jobs, and church, community. They left with no stateside support; we were what are called ‘tent-making missionaries’, self-supporting missionaries like the apostle Paul, All we had was a promise of a job waiting for my dad and a short-term apartment, while some missionaries were temporarily in the States.
The first job did not last, and the other family we were working with couldn’t sustain the ministry. Was it a failure? This type of dead end often works against our feeling of self-worth. Another congregation, a few hours north, needed help, so we moved again. We served there for seven years before returning to the U.S. The original purpose for going didn’t turn out, but God still used my dad’s willingness to serve.
At this point it is tempting to emphasize those lessons about how God uses us if we are willing and available. Those are true lessons, but that is not the one I want to leave you with. In the end, our value; my father’s value – it never had anything to do with the results of our efforts! It is what we mean to God because of who we are. He made us and bought us, and if we value ourselves on that basis, we won’t ride the roller coaster of emotions that we often do when we decide our own value.