Many people suffer with feelings of inferiority; I used to and know many others who also do or have in the past. Inferiority makes one feel like they are insignificant to almost everyone, if not to all people. Why do we feel that way? Because we don’t understand God’s great love for us.

Perhaps we don’t know that He loves us. If that’s the case, then we need to meet Him and let Him give us that assurance. Most people have a vague knowledge of John 3:16, simply because it’s been displayed many places, even if they have never read the verse from the Bible. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.*

When the Bible says God loves the world, that means everyone in it, including you! No one is left out, no matter their race, their economic situation, or where they live. EVERYONE. Including YOU. Look at these verses from 1 John 4:18-19: There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.  We love Him because He first loved us. We have no reason at all to fear someone who tremendously loves us – so much so that He sacrificed his only Son to die for us so that we could be adopted into His family.

Therefore, because the Holy God sent His Son to die for you, are you inferior or insignificant? Absolutely not! All people are significant to God, and we should be to each other. No one is worth throwing away. That’s not saying that some people may act like that, and some people are evil because they allow the devil to direct their minds and actions rather than God. But Jesus died for them also.

           A friend of mine, Phillip Baker writes a tiny daily meditation he calls the Daily Move, and this was a recent one.

Significance! 
When Jesus was hanging on the Cross, He stopped everything! He stopped to give a son a mother, and a mother a son. That tells me nothing is insignificant to Him. You are not insignificant. Your life, words, service, worship, thoughts, kindness, seed, your journey in life is not insignificant to Him.

That’s a good summary of the significance we each have to God, isn’t it? Therefore, if we are that important to God, then what if someone else doesn’t think very highly of us? Why should their opinion count for so much? The challenge is to learn how much God loves us so that we can learn to love ourselves. If we don’t love ourselves, then we can’t truly love anyone else because how do we know what love is? This isn’t a selfish love where we only consider our needs above everyone else’s. It’s an honest appraisal of the fact that we are significant simply because we exist and God loves us. We see and understand our good points as well as the places we need to change or improve. Then we’re able to look at others and see them in the same light.

That’s a real freedom in living. We don’t have to be perfect, whatever that might be in our minds, and neither does anyone else. Isn’t that a relief? Because no matter how much we try we all know in our hearts that we make mistakes and we hurt others even if unintentionally. But we forgive ourselves and others and go on.

Never let anyone tell you that you’re insignificant. You are not! You are loved by God and if you believe in Him, you are His child. That is very significant. Smile! Today is going to be a great day because God loves you.

______________

* All verses are from the New King James Version.