And the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being.
Genesis 2:7
Every day of our lives we walk by people who may seem inconsequential to us. Our culture has given us certain cues and so we tend to place value judgments on those we meet. We may meet people who do not appear to have the level of talent, knowledge or experiences that would make them noticeable or famous. We may even be tempted to brush them off, ignore them or bypass them, and yet God shows us again and again that he is no respecter of persons. He works his good works through anyone who is willing and available, to achieve his Holy and divine purposes. This is because God knows something that the rest of us don’t, that in each one of his human creations is something hidden, the image of God (Genesis 1:26a); the breath of God (Genesis2:7) gifts that only he can see because he put them there.
In Genesis 2:7, the Bible records that God formed man out of the dust of the earth (dirt). Without God, man is but a lowly substance, only fit to be trampled upon. However, after God breathes into his nostrils, man becomes a living being. It is God’s breath in man that makes the difference.
So why do we spend the greater part of our lives seeking human approval? Why are we so caught up in proving ourselves to mere mortals, when the breath of God is in us? Why do we concern ourselves so much with what people think about us, when God has already declared us to be his children and his friends?
Mary was a simple village girl, David, a mere boy, Joseph was just one of the many sons of Jesse and Rahab, a prostitute, yet God saw something in them that no one else saw. God saw their hidden potential. God Almighty, who breathed his breath into every one of these biblical characters, saw the gifts that he himself had placed in them and he nurtured those gifts until God’s plan for their lives came to pass. This same God who breathed into these characters has breathed into your nostrils giving you life. He sees your hidden potential and says, "it is," even though you are still becoming. You are not what people say you are. You are not even what you think you are. You are only what God made you to be, because he hid something precious in you which will be revealed in his time. So, quit striving. Surrender to this truth today and let his will be done in and through you.
Loving Father, thank you for making me in your image. Help me see myself as you see and make me truly content in what you have made me. I acknowledge that I am a work in progress. I surrender to your will and to your way, have all of me I pray. Amen.