One of A Kind

You were made in the image of God by His very own hands.  He created you with specific gifts, talents, and abilities.  God has a very personal plan for you, a plan to give you a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).  His plan does not include you being a poor imitation of another person.  He made you to be one of a kind.  

All to often we work hard trying to be someone else, trying to be someone we were not made to be.  The consequences of our self rejection are all negative.  Like a dog chasing it's tail, we will never reach that place of thinking we are good enough as long as keep trying to be someone we are not.  This kind of thinking will just keep going around in circles never finding peace. 

                ...But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another. 

                              1 Corinthians 7:7 ESV

I know this came from Paul's teachings on the relationship between a man and a woman in marriage but this is a nugget of truth and wisdom that when firmly grasped and confidently accepted as an absolute, will change our lives.  We do not have to live up the standards of men. We do not have to dress according to what is most popular.  We don't have to drive a certain car or live in a certain neighborhood.  These thing don't matter to God.  What does matter to Him is that we accept ourselves as the treasure he made us to be.  

You are the delight of God's eye.  He loves you just as you are because unlike mankind, God sees below the surface of our appearance.  He alone knows what great things are hidden within you for you to discover on this journey of life.   

               Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him...

                              1 Corinthians 7:17 ESV

Stop fighting against God and relax.  Take a deep breath and say out loud, 

"I am God's masterpiece!  I am one of a kind, uniquely made in His image to do amazing things."  

Now live everyday as an adventure.  Memorize Romans 12 verses 1 and 2 and ask God to help you live them.  Discover for yourself what God has put in you.  Stop looking at what someone else has or does.  Surrender your entire life to God, rely on Him to show you how you can use what you have to make a difference in the lives of others.  

Enjoy and employ your own talents and serve God by helping people.

Learning to accept yourself comes when you choose to believe what God says about you over what society says.  We all have our own style and our own way of doing things.  When you catch yourself thinking negatively about yourself or comparing yourself to someone else - stop - and instead of letting it play over and over again in your mind like a broken record, replace those thoughts with God's declarations of love for you.  

God made you to be you and only you.  He will not help you become anyone else but you.  

Learn to accept yourself and you will learn to enjoy your life

Heidirn