Unperfectly Precious

Yes – Unperfect is a word! It’s found in Psalm 139: 16.

Psalm 139: 16 -17 “Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there were none of them. How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! How great is the sum of them.”

So to begin I want to assure you of a few things that you are, according to the Bible.

Obviously, this does not cancel the fact that we are sinners who need Jesus. If you have never accepted Jesus, please do so now! He has so much invested in you already and He offers acceptance that you will not find anywhere else. He has designed you for a purpose that you were created to fulfill!

Here are the verses that I want to share with you. It’s important that you claim these FOR YOU!

Jeremiah 31:3 “The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love…”

Ephesians 1:6b “…he hath made us accepted in the beloved”

Ephesians 1:4a “According as he hath chosen us in him…”

Psalm 119:73 “Thy hands hath made me and fashioned me…”

You might wonder how “unperfect” can be used in the same list as “precious”, “loved”, “accepted”, “chosen”, and “fashioned”.

THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT THIS ARTICLE IS ABOUT!

I want to talk about something that I know a lot of young ladies deal with to some extent or another. It is a condition that we have been programmed into by the society we live in. This condition results in depression, fear, anxiety, bitterness, racism, and hate.

This condition is called “self-rejection”

Ok, ok! I don’t want to lose you here! This is not a humanistic tirade about loving yourself and finding strength inside you.

This is a Bible-based study that addresses an issue I believe keeps a lot of young women from being an effective witness and testimony.

If you hate who you are, this will affect the way you love God and others. It will affect the way you serve God and others. You will make excuses about why you can’t do certain things.

In my younger teenaged years, I struggled with loneliness, fear of non-acceptance, lack of trust, and shyness. Looking back I realize that the root of this problem was self-rejection.

Praise the Lord God changed my heart using this verse:

2 Timothy 1:7 “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”

He showed me the things I needed to change and gave me the opportunities to learn how to change them.

• In my loneliness, Jesus became my best friend

• God taught me that being accepted by Him, even if that meant standing alone, was worth more than compromise.

• Through a scary health ordeal I learned that before trusting God becomes easy, it might be very hard.

• God gave me a job where I learned how to reach out, find common ground and carry on a conversation with complete strangers… (It was a major shock to my naturally outgoing sister the first time she witnessed this!!☺)

The key to self-acceptance is knowing the difference between what you can and cannot change.

There are some factors that make up who we are that we can change. Above is an example of what God helped me change in my life. I’ve heard it said a lot, “that’s just who I am…” Actually, your attitude plays a huge part in who you are. If you sincerely want a change, you can ask God for guidance and then let Him help you become “the best you, that you can be”!!

It’s true that everyone is born with a different personality. I'm glad about that! For example, I’m one of those “try anything even though it might not work” people. My boyfriend will readily admit that he is not; he prefers to calculate risks…a good thing really!! ☺ My youngest brother is a spotlight king, but my middle brother would rather stay in the background. My sister likes to be surrounded by a group of friends wherever she goes; I’m a bit of a loner.

These are not the kind of things I’m talking about. I'm referring to things like extreme shyness, unreasonable fears, disinterest in valuable pursuits, and reluctance to serve. When we refuse to sing because we may “mess up”, won’t volunteer to teach a junior church lesson because the kids might not listen, or complain about helping with a skit because we could look like a “fool” we are exhibiting either self-rejection or plain old pride. I’ve noticed that a lot of times, especially with girls, they really don’t think they can do anything!

Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me”

God does not expect you to go around putting yourself down and rejecting who you are. He made you and He loves you!!!! He wants you to be confident in Him and always ready to give an answer for the hope that is in you!

Read Ephesians chapter one and see if that doesn’t give you some confidence, peace, and joy!! What a lot of amazing things Jesus did for us!!!

Now for a topic change: we must also understand and accept that there are some things about ourselves that we cannot change.

Here is a list I saw that I want to share with you, of things that we cannot change about who we are.

• Parents – You had no choice in this matter, obviously. Whether you have a godly heritage or your family is not even saved, you cannot change that. You are commanded to obey them in the Lord, and you will be blessed if you honor them. (Ephesians6:1)

• Time in History – We were born in this century for a reason. I love history too, but consider that God has you in this time period on purpose. Besides, our lives will be history at some point! Try not to spend a lot of time complaining about lockdowns, violated freedoms, and political issues. Rise above! (Esther 14:4)

• Racial background – You are exactly as God intended. You are precious. In Christ, there is no distinction made between Jew, Greek, or Gentile. Racism is definitely a problem in a lot of places. A Christian should never take part in such rejection of a person that God made in His image. (Romans10:12)

• National heritage – I am Canadian! I am Nova Scotian! I love my country and personally, I can’t think of a better place to live than NS!

• Gender – Male and Female created He them. When I see the confusion in the young people of this world I am filled with sadness. Rejection of your gender is the severest form of self-rejection. Girls – embrace femininity! Be modest. If you work at a farm like me and spend a lot of time covered in dirt, at least put in some earrings and wear some mascara! ☺

• Birth order – You’re stuck!!! Anyone with siblings understands the difficulty that some kids have to deal with being the oldest, youngest, or middle kid.

• Siblings – They are who they are. Love them! It's good practice for every other relationship you’ll have.

• Physical Features – I’m short. Maybe you’re “too tall”, or you hate your shoe size. Freckles? Crooked nose? You can’t change that. Granted there are things about your physique you can change…again it’s important to see the difference. Drastically deviating from your natural looks, acting afraid to be seen without your makeup, and refraining from eating to the point of depriving yourself of nutrition, are signs that you are struggling with self-rejection.

Isaiah 45:9-10 “Woe unto him that striveth against his Maker…shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, what makest thou?"

God made you exactly the way HE wants you. You need to accept that person if you want to fully appreciate the plans He has for you. Looking back, I know why I struggled with some of the things I did. I also see that God had a special situation ready to help me overcome each one.

There are times I still struggle with certain forms of self-rejection. Like I said earlier, we have been programmed by the society we live in. Advertisements, entertainment, and the constant pressure to conform can swamp us!

Remember though, whether you want to look like a glamour Barbie, a western cowgirl, or an Old Navy model; doesn’t change the fact that you are conforming to something. Maybe some images aren’t so bad; the outfit might be super cute and modest. However, the idea here is to be YOU. Not your best friend, not the flyer picture, not even your pastor’s wife or mother!

The Bible says in Romans 12 to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Allow God to change what can be changed, and help you accept what cannot be changed.

You may be Unperfect…but you are Precious!!!

Your Sister in Christ,

Charity