‘But the Lord said to Samuel: “Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature, because I have rejected him. Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the Lord looks into the heart”.’ ~1 Samuel 16:7

When Rebekah was called to move the 500 miles with Eleazar to meet her new husband and family, she must have been a bit overwhelmed. Would she fit in there? Would the culture be any different? What were these people like? Why did God choose me? Will I miss my family too much? But she didn’t question Him; instead, she trusted that God made her the person she was supposed to be, and God had this purpose for her, and God was calling her to fill it. She trusted that she was who God needed.

Too often, we get stuck and hung up on the scary parts. We say “God, you want me to talk to a stranger? What if somebody hears me?” “God, you want me to pray for a healing? I’ve never led a prayer before; I can’t do that.” There’s even the always lovely “God, I can’t speak in front of a group of people; I’m having a fat day and I’m all disheveled and I really just want to shrink into the corner.”

It’s enough to make us never follow God in the first place. But here’s the thing: Every single part of you, flaws and all, was made by God, and honed by either God or the world. If it was honed by God, it’s exactly what you need. If it’s not, God can take away the layers of the world as you need to shed them. Either way, He sees you, both as the priceless treasure He created, and as the person He wants you to become unto Him.

We tend to label ourselves according to what we see around us; physically, we’re constantly comparing ourselves to see whether we look as polished, thin, or as put together as the people we pass on the street. Emotionally, we try to radiate confidence. We look in the mirror and realize we come up short. We aren’t physically perfect, and we aren’t all that confident on the inside. Even spiritually, we label ourselves: are we ‘good’ Christians, ‘strong’ Christians? We feel selfish or successful, depending on the day. But regardless, we look in the mirror and almost never see perfection. We try to do it all, and be it all, and we can’t. We never will. And we wonder where our place is at all.

The problem is, we’re looking in the mirror, a two-dimensional image, and expecting it to show a reality. Really when you think about it, we’re looking for God. We’re looking for the One who is perfectly beautiful, wise and loving beyond measure. We’re looking for the One who can do it all. All too often, we try to fill that role ourselves. With images of supermoms who still dress impeccably, and career-minded, successful women who are also domestic goddesses running through our brains, we try to do it all. And when we look in that fake mirror, we see how far short we fall. The bottom line is, we can’t be everything. We can’t do it all, and we never will. That isn’t us; it’s not who we are and it’s not who we were created to be.

God is in us, but we are mere vessels, full of holes and cracks. And you know what? That’s exactly how we need to be. We need to know that we can’t do things on our own; for then we know that God will receive the glory of our every act. We also need to learn to see through His mirror. Know that with every step you take, God is applauding you for walking. With every fear you have, God is right next to you, crying out to your heart and begging you to turn to Him so that He can show you who you really are. And most of all, know that in whatever body God has placed you, you are beautiful beyond measure. You are wonderfully made, and inherently priceless, both to this world and our Father in heaven.

Today I ask you today to spend time with the One who made you, and ask Him to show you your beauty. Ask Him to show you your worth. Don’t look in the mirror on the wall; look in the mirror that He gives you in His word. We don’t have to be perfect to be exactly what He needs. In fact, the weaker the better! So ask Him, and let Him show you your true value. You have a destiny and a future in Christ, and even in the midst of your worst mistakes, even when you’re actively trying to push Him away, you are beautiful in His eyes. So embrace it!

~Rebekah A