08/12/2022
Youāll never find a ruby in a garbage bin. Only a fool would throw such an expensive thing away. A quick search on the internet would yield many hits on how to take proper care of rubies: that they be kept from harmful chemicals like strong perfumes or dishwashing liquids, that cleaning must be done regularly and gently, and that they be stored safely and securely after use. And maybe, if we are the owner of such a stone, we wouldnāt even let just anybody borrow itā¦ because we know how costly it is. Every time we think about it, we remember the price it took us to have it - the hours spent and the energy exerted for us to earn the money to buy such a precious possession. So we take good care of itā¦ to the best of our abilities.
If we go to great lengths to take care of an inanimate object that lasts only in this lifetime, then how much more should we look after a living soul created by God to be like no other?
When we look at the world today, weāll see women in relationships that are abusive, confusing, or undefined; women who are silenced, women who are mistreated, women who are not given value as they should be. But why do we allow such things? Why do women choose to be and stay in such relationships when such makes them dissatisfied, unhappy, or even miserable?
Stephen Chbosky wrote this in one of his fiction novels: āWe accept the love we think we deserve.ā The way we see ourselves affects the decisions that we make. The relationships we choose to be and stay in are according to how much worth we ascribe to ourselves. If we allow ourselves to be mistreated, to have no voice, to be kept in the dark, itās because we think itās all the love we can ever deserve.
But is it, really?
How do šŗš°š¶ define your worth? Does it depend on how you look? On your achievements or the lack thereof? Maybe on a past that is still haunting you? As you look in, who are you really? Where does your identity lie?
As a fellow believer in Christ, I hope your answers to these questions rest in Him. The truth is that our identity is found solely in our Saviour Jesus Christ. Unsightly on our own, yes, but made beautiful to be the apple of His eye (Ps. 17:8). All our worldly achievements are but dung in front of Him, yes, but He is our sufficiency (2 Cor. 3:5). Sin-sick and wretched through and through such that we always fall short of His glory, yes, but assured that nothing and no one, not even our depraved selves, shall be able to separate us from His love (Rom. 8:38-39).
My dear friend, remember this truth and keep it close to your heart so that the enemy wonāt be able to deceive you: in Christ you are loved (Rom. 5:8), valuable (1 Cor. 6:20), accepted (Eph. 1:6), and precious (Ps. 139:13-18), and that will never change for He, Himself, does not change.
The enemy would remind you of the unlovable things about you, he would try to take hold of you with your ugly past, he would keep on lying to you to discourage you and persuade you that you are unworthy, but I encourage you to fight with the whole armour of God ā fight his lies with Godās truth in the Holy Scriptures, fight in faith and peace from God, fight in the righteousness that God has imputed upon you, fight, with the assurance of the Holy Spirit, that, through the blood of Jesus Christ, you have been redeemed. (Eph. 1:7) And, dear friend, remember that we are overcomers of the world because our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Himself has already been victorious over it (1 John 5:4; Jn. 16:33).
So fight with the assurance that you will win this battle, knowing that it is ultimately the Lordās and believing that He will always be with you. Fight to know your worth. Because when we do know our worth, when we keep in mind the high price it took for us to have such worth - the precious shed blood of the only One worthy to be a holy sacrifice to appease Godās wrath and to release us from the bo***ge of sin and death - we take an active role in protecting it. Just like how one preciously takes care of a ruby, we look, veer, or run away from relationships that may harm us; relationships that do not put our worth, our identity, our purity in high regard. We build a hedge - physical, emotional, and spiritual - around us and make every effort to fortify it. And we donāt let just anybody inā¦ until we know for sure that he sees our worth as God does.
May the Lord give you strength in the light of His truth and love to endure this battle for living in accordance with your God-imputed worth. May you have a strong conviction to keep and protect your worth until someone who sees it and desires to protect it comes. May you patiently wait for that someone who yearns and aspires to love you just like how God does; someone who is patient, kind, gentle, and true, someone who is secured and selfless, someone who perseveres, persists, hopes. May you wait for the man God has prepared for you, the one whom He knows would seek and pursue you, His dearly beloved daughter.
Always remember: you have been bought with a high price. You are worthy and loved. You are already complete in Christ. So do not ever settle for anything or anyone less. Keep on pursuing godliness, keep on allowing God to mold your character into that of a virtuous woman, and rest in Him as He takes care of the rest. In the process, God will cause the virtuous man to find his virtuous woman, and he knows for sure that her price is far above rubies.
Written by Sis Janel Herrera
Art by Sis Ninnah Herrera
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