I stepped on the corner of our scale in the dark, and the plastic foot broke. Great. No woman really wants to confess that she broke the bathroom scale, but I did. So off I went to the store to get a new one.
We took the new one out of the box and used it the next morning. Immediately my husband and I gained three to five pounds. What in the world?!
Did we really gain weight? Nope. We were just using a different standard. Even though I knew I hadn’t actually gained weight, I still felt a little discouraged. (I know. That’s weird.)
Depending on what standard you use for your identity, it’s easy to get discouraged too. You might get the feeling that your value is based on your weight or your income or your marital status or your ability to reproduce or your age or how good of a pray-er you are.
It’s wiser and leaves you feeling more at peace if you use God’s standard for your identity. “But now, this is what the LORD says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: ‘Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine’” (Isaiah 43:1).
You are his. No matter your income, popularity, weight, or health status. He felt you were valuable enough to form you, redeem you, and call you his child. This is the only scale that ultimately matters.
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About the Author
Linda Buxa
Linda Buxa is a freelance writer and editor and a regular blogger and contributing writer for Time of Grace. She is the author of Dig In! Family Devotions to Feed Your Faith, Made for Friendship, and Parenting by Prayer. Linda and her husband, Greg, have lived in Alaska, Washington D.C., California, and are now in Wisconsin. They have three pretty great kids who are all taller than she is.