Do You Know The Value You Have In Christ? …Hello Hump Day readers. In two days comes Good Friday. The stigma in that time in society is still the same we wrestle with today. The greatest obstacle to being physically handicapped is often not the condition itself but the stigma society still associates with it in Jesus’ day and till today. So, I want to share a story about one person that I have so much respect for and how she even made it home from war!

She is Tammy Duckworth, a U.S, Senator in the state of Illinois. A few days ago, in the Senate hearing room this happened. Remind you, this story is NOT About Politics! This story is about how we so often denigrate people and way too often those ugly words hurt those, especially ones with physically handicapped—it’s like they have no worth. OK, on to the story. She had arrived with policy details, with specifics, with the kind of careful inquiry that veterans’ issues require. But instead of addressing those issues, Vance chose another path. He compared her to Forrest Gump and the ugly laugh that went with it.

Take a moment to consider that. A sitting senator, speaking to a decorated combat veteran who had left parts of herself on an Iraqi battlefield, decided that referencing a fictional character was appropriate. Tammy did not raise her voice. She didn’t have to. When you have flown a Black Hawk helicopter through enemy fire, when you have felt the blast that rips through metal and bone, when you wake up in a hospital missing both legs and part of an arm, small insults from small pitiful men and women hardly register.

Very often, our society ascribes value to people based on their contribution to it. So many people who are limited in their capacity to contribute are thought of “you are less valuable.” That bothers me. Whether you believe in God or not, you can’t take away that God has created you—God has created EVERYTHING and he loves us even if we don’t believe in him.

Let us heed these powerful words from the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 2:4–7 [NTFE] But when it comes to mercy, God is rich! He had such great love for us that he took us at the very point where we were dead through our offenses, and made us alive together with the Messiah (yes, you are saved by sheer grace!). He raised us up with him, and made us sit with him—in the heavenly places, in Messiah Jesus! This was so that in the ages to come he could show just how unbelievably rich his grace is, the kindness he has shown us in Messiah Jesus. How has this all come about? You have been saved by grace, through faith! This doesn’t happen on your own initiative; it’s God’s gift. It isn’t on the basis of works, so no one is able to boast. This is the explanation: God has made us what we are. God has created us in Messiah Jesus for the good works that he prepared, ahead of time, as the road we must travel.

The truth is—we are valuable because of who we are not because of how we look or what we accomplish. It is not OUR evaluability; it is the grace that God has for us—God’s grace alone!

So, whether you have a handicap or not, stop listening to those who try to base your value as “no good.” Like Tammy did, she didn’t throw a fit and scream, she told TRUTH and VALUE.

The next time someone wants to denigrate you, put you down or say “you are less valuable-in fact you are worthless” don’t get heated up. Instead, remind them that we are all valued by our incredible God who loves each and every one of us, showers us with grace, love, hope and healing and so much more. And if you are willing, share with that person saying, “I don’t like what you said to me but I still will value you because you are a child of God.” AMEN.