Vertical Value

Picture by Caprice Miller

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” – Psalm 139:14

AAAWWWEEE!!!!!  Just seeing these little guys makes me want to go into the little high pitched voice that we use when a baby is present.  They look so cuddly and cute….like a baby would be.  At first glance you would think they are all the same cute.  But it doesn’t take long to realize they are each unique in their own special way.  And each way is just as adorable as the other. 

It’s interesting to think about the differences though.  Being that these little guys are meant to be sold to an admirer, the subjective opinion of the potential buyer comes into play.  To take a page from the Toy Story script, what if they could hear what opinions were said about each?  “I don’t like red.”  “There’s too many hearts on that one.”  “The stitching on that one is messed up.”  Picky, picky people! 

Now, what if we do that to each other?  Oh wait….we do.   Social media has made it so easy to make derogatory comments about people with no thought that those comments might actually be seen by that person.  Out of sight, out of mind, right?  In this age of technology, chances are that people are searching for what is being said out there about themselves.  How many “likes” do we have or who commented on the post?  In essence, we are searching for our identity and value in the eyes of others, even if those others are strangers who know nothing of us. 

Sadly enough, before we even look at social media, many of us have a tendency to begin this type of dialogue with ourselves.  We deem ourselves not pretty, skinny, fat, talented, smart, whatever enough and stamp ourselves with a label of “not enough” and “unworthy”.   This usually is brought about by the comparison game we play with ourselves.  Once again, we look around at others for our identity….our value.  We determine our own worthiness and value simply by how we measure up to others from our own perspective or someone else's. 

It’s time for a new perspective.  The verse above is taken from Psalm 139.  If you read this short little chapter, there is verse after verse that tells us how special we are to God….The Creator of the Universe.  Think about it – He created the entire universe and as human beings, we are His most precious creation.  He created us to have a relationship with Him.  You are so precious that He knows your thoughts, when you get up and lie down.  (Psalm 139:1-4)  He knit you in your mother’s womb.  (Psalm 139:13)  He gave His Son for you. (John 3:16)  If we are created with such special care, how is it that we look at ourselves and see something so contrary to that? 

When we decide our value from a horizontal perspective – from those around us – we end up shunning God and His precious creation.  We are choosing not to recognize our uniqueness, the talents He has given us and His deep love for us.  Instead we choose to concentrate on the uniqueness and talents of others and wish we had what they have instead.  Chances are, they are doing the same thing.   But when we make a choice to look up and understand that our true value comes from a vertical perspective – from God - our world could be turned upside down.  We begin to view ourselves and our talents differently.  We begin to view others from this perspective as well.  A sense of gratitude starts to bubble to the surface – just like the writer of this Psalm.   We end up standing in awe of God’s unique and masterly designed creation.  Not in a boastful manner, but in thankfulness of life.  We discover that those “quirks” that we took for granted are really unique talents that were given to us.  We begin understanding and accepting His love for us. 

Change your perspective today.  Know that your “Vertical Value” is a much better and truer perspective than your “horizontal value” ever could be.  Take a moment to praise God because you are fearfully and wonderfully made.  Now, tell someone else that they are too.  Accept the love God has for you as His unique creation and let that love overflow to the world around you.