You may be in the habit of defining yourself based on what others say and think about you – your job, your appearance, your social status, or your economic situation. These impressions are usually superficial, and are not indications of who you really are. Just think about it: are these measures of your worth true, and are they permanent?

Consider what the Bible says: since we were made in God’s image, we are completely competent and eternally lovable!

2 Corinthians 3:5 says our competence comes not from ourselves, but from God. We are therefore more than adequate for what we are called to do.

Jeremiah 31:3 says that God loves us with an everlasting love. He loves us just as we are, and that can never change.

So God judges us by our true value as his children. We may not be able to truly understand what gives a person value – but God does. And that, of course, is what matters today, tomorrow, and forever.