The world will tell you you’re worth what you look like or how well you dress or how talented you are. The world will tell you that you’re only worth something if you can prove yourself and be better than the next guy. Then your worth only lasts until some upstart comes along and grabs your spotlight.

God tells a different story. He sees something He made when He sees you. He sees His image on you. Just like an antiques dealer or art critic will tell you that a signature increases the value of something, so does God. That’s what imago dei, or the image of God means. To be an image bearer is to wear God’s signature on you. You aren’t worthless; you’re priceless.

You’re twice valued because not only do you bear the Divine signature, but you were worth to God the most extravagant price ever paid for anything. The precious blood of God’s only Son, the very life of Jesus, purchased you for God. That speaks volumes of what you’re worth.

God made you and Jesus died for you. That trumps anything anyone has ever said about how you’re good for nothing. It trumps any word of condemnation, any time anyone told you that the world would be better off without you, any time someone you loved basically told you that you weren’t worth the effort. Jesus speaks a better word, and that word is that you are His Beloved.

I heard somewhere that salvation is when you believe in Jesus and sanctification occurs when you find out that Jesus believes in you. The truth is that you are precious to God, that He delights in you, that your Abba is indeed very fond of you and rejoices over you with loud singing.

It took me a long time to believe that about myself. I am still coming to terms with all that means to me. And yeah, I basically just wrote down what I heard tonight from Mike Glenn at Kairos. But I figure that truth is truth, no matter if I came up with it or someone else did. I’m not trying to be original, but faithful to what God has laid on my heart.

So my prayer is that you would live out of a joy that comes from knowing how deeply your Father God loves you and how much He values you. You were worth everything to Him, and there is nothing you are or have or do that can even begin to repay Him, but all He asks in return is for just you. Ain’t that cool?