SELF-WORTH, EVALUATION OF

Suppose that during the past week a young wife gave birth to her first baby. Now suppose that as she held her new baby in her arms and was enjoying the pleasure of motherhood, someone came up to her and said, “How much do you want for the child?” Of course she would show no interest in the offer and would be offended at even a suggestion that her precious babe was for sale. But the stranger is persistent and offers ten thousand dollars, then a hundred thousand dollars, and finally one million dollars. The offers are in vain because the mother will simply press the baby closer to her and reply, “My baby is worth more to me than all the world!”

Of course, if she didn’t say that, we would question whether she had the proper attitude for motherhood. But why does she say it? Because she looks forward to thousands of dirty diapers, sleepless nights with a sick child, and the costs of raising that child? Because the child will bring her fame and fortune? Of course not. Rather, it is because she has chosen to value this tiny person, to deem the small one to be of worth, and to love that baby of hers. Such worth resides in the very identity of a person, not in their performance. And such worth, coming from the image of God in all of us, must be the basis for our concept of ourselves, too, if our self-portrait is to be durable and worthwhile.1211