One of my favorite traditions of the Christmas season is to get out all of the decorations and put up the Christmas tree. I drag up all the boxes from the basement, assemble the Christmas tree, gently unwrap each ornament and hang it on a branch–all while listening to my favorite Christmas CDs.
One year while I was wrapping lights around the tree, one little lyric from the beloved carol, “O Holy Night” suddenly struck me as if I had heard it for the first time:
“Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.”
The soul felt its worth.
That line sang in my heart because truthfully I don’t always feel valuable. I often feel I’m not worth much.
Do I Matter?
In his book, Fearless, Max Lucado says that one of mankind’s greatest fear is the fear of not mattering. Friends forget to call. I wonder: Do they care? I shuffle through crowds looking for the perfect gift. Am I just one of the herd? The world’s population has reached 7 billion. Does my puny life among so many make any difference at all?
Thankfully, Christmas reminds me that I do matter. It informs each of us of our worth in God’s eyes.
You matter so much that Jesus left the comfort and splendor of heaven to be born to a poor Galilean couple. He loved you enough to lie on a bed of straw. He cared enough for you to experience hunger, thirst, and even damp swaddling clothes. Jesus came to redeem you so that you–yes, you–could live with Him forever by believing in His saving work on the cross.
Precious in God’s Eyes
So this Christmas, if while pushing through crowds you begin to wonder if you matter at all, remember that you are valuable in God’s eyes. He tells you in His Word:
“You are precious in My eyes and honored, and I love you.”
Isaiah 43:4
God sees you as precious. He regards you as honored. He loves you.
So when you begin to doubt your worth, reread those words, and feel your fear of not mattering melt away.
Rejoice that because of Christ, your soul has worth.
Next step: Sing or listen to “O Holy Night” and let the words “and the soul felt its worth” sink into your soul. Memorize or post Isaiah 43:4 where you will be reminded of your value in God’s eyes.