I Am Valuable

       I am valuable to someone. Thinking of this has been one of the many things in life that has kept me motivated. When I wake up in the morning and feel like I am going to face the greatest challenge in life, I have to remind myself that someone hand-selected me for a specific time and reason to endure and overcome that challenge. Most times, there are no cheerleaders in sight to help give that extra motivation, as I personally would wish for; however, God gives such a great glimmer of hope and encouragement that helps me to push over the obstacles in front of me. Now, I must admit that there were days that I felt defeated, but deep down in my heart I knew that I would be fine if I continued to hold on to the promises and strength of God's Word. Still, in those very moments when the "OMG" happened, the mind did not automatically think of "aww, it'll be fine". Instead, it initially went more like this: "Why me, Lord?", "What have I done wrong?", or "I know this is not my fault but I feel like I should take the blame".

       One of the main things that I tell people nowadays is that I will be 100% genuine with them because I am not growing backwards, but I am growing older and forward. Things that I used to be afraid to deal with have either been handled or will be handled. There is no more thinking that I am not good enough when I am fully aware that God has a heart like "the size of Texas" for me, and I am stronger than before. Yes, I am valuable to someone. In addition, I thank God for people like my parents who conceived me out of love, raised me with love as a child, and continuously encourage me with love on a monthly basis as an adult. My pastor and his lovely wife has always been there for me to remind me of God's timing and faithfulness to be infallible. I am valuable to someone. That is what I have been stating repeatedly to myself because I know my worth. :)

       Recently, I conversed with a young woman on the issues of life, politics, careers, family, and self-worth. Once we arrived to the issues of a person's self-worth, the discussion of how she views me eventually arose because I could hear her skirting around the words that she really wanted to convey. Instead of a long, drawn out conversation to arrive at what was needing to be released, I simply cut to the chase and asked the million-dollar question to help her arrive there: "When you look at me, what do you see?" Her response was a few babbling words that made no sense for a split moment. Then I repeated the question with ease, and received this response from her: "Defeated". To most, this would have been a crushing word. I realized that the young woman was looking for me to produce a tangible asset that would spell the word s-u-c-c-e-s-s and make things clearer for her to cope with. Not only that, she expected a certain type of tangible asset that she could not necessarily see at the time of the conversation. My Father created me with many intangible assets that can only be recognized through the Spirit of God. Once spoken into existence, these assets are made manifest. At that particular time, then are people able to see the tangible asset, (or worth), of something. In other words, you cannot build a successful business, house, or financial stability in one day. This is the portion of life that many (including myself at one point) have had difficulty understanding. Our society has trained people to "snatch success within a short period of time", and if one is not able to keep up with every other business mogul, then he or she is viewed as "defeated". But this is not the true case.

       The time and effort that a person places into building is what will prepare him or her for a longer period of stability, and this cannot be rushed by any means. God will take us individually on various journeys that can only be understood by Him, yourself, and maybe a few others whom God has specifically placed there in your life as an encourager. Anyone and anything else that cannot see the vision that God has given to you is a hinderance. The timing of the success that God wants you to achieve and their timing will always be different. So, the next time someone expresses to you that you are "defeated", "beat down", or "moving too slowly", remind yourself that your value and success does not depend upon a clock, but rather what God thinks of you. Eventually, you'll begin to see yourself as God truly sees you: VALUABLE.


Readers' Input: Please take the time to add your comments/thoughts, challenges you have endured, and how you overcame those obstacles. I would love to see the work that God has done and is doing in your lives. Be encouraged.