Not a Mistake

Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

READ: GENESIS 1:26-31; PSALMS 119:73; 139:14; EPHESIANS 2:1-10

Who am I? This question is one we wrestle with throughout our lives. And it’s an important question to ask, because much of what we do flows from who we believe we are. Here’s the thing though—we can’t answer this question without God. And thankfully, He provides the answer in His Word. Take a look.

God created human beings, and He did so out of love. Genesis 1:26-31 says that God made us in His image, and He entrusted us with the important job of caring for His creation. Furthermore, if we are in Christ, Ephesians 2:10 says we are God’s masterpiece—we are created anew in Christ Jesus, and God has given us good and purposeful work to do.

Have you ever thought of yourself as God’s masterpiece? How amazing to think that God created each of us, purposefully crafting us to be unique and wonderful (Psalms 119:73; 139:14). Yet, oftentimes we don’t realize how valuable we truly are. As we go through life in a world broken by sin, we are bombarded with lies about ourselves, lies that say we’re not worthwhile, not capable, not lovable. As we’re confronted with our own sins and shortcomings, we may even start to believe our very existence is a mistake.

But God knows the truth about us. He made us, and so He’s the only one qualified to tell us who we are and what we’re worth. The fact is, we are so precious to God that He came to be with us. The second person of the Trinity, the Father’s only begotten Son, became human and lived among us. It was worth it to Him to pay the ultimate price to save us from sin—Jesus was willing to lay down His life so that we could be forgiven, brought near to God, and made new. And God the Father is glorified in all of this (John 17:1-3; Galatians 1:3-5; Philippians 2:11).

So now, as people who’ve put our faith in Jesus, we can rest in God’s love for us. And, because the Holy Spirit fills our hearts with His love (Romans 5:5), we can rejoice in the ways He has made us, using both the natural abilities and the spiritual gifts He has given us to express our love for God and for the people around us. And whenever we find ourselves struggling with lies about who we are and what we’re worth, we can turn to Jesus. He will remind us that we are His priceless work of art. God doesn’t make mistakes, He makes masterpieces! • Hannah Howe

• When you struggle to see yourself as God sees you, who are trusted Christians who can remind you of what God says about you in His Word? How could you be this kind of friend to others?

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)