I Am a Child of God
One day, a man who was teaching a Sunbeam class asked his friend, Mike, if he would like to help teach that class.
Mike had black hair and a long beard and hadn’t come to church since he was 12. To his surprise, Mike said he would.
The teacher told his class that they had a visitor that day. They were much quieter than usual, and their eyes kept wandering back to Mike.
Suddenly, one little boy got up, stood across from Mike, and said, “Are you Jesus?”
From the way all the other kids leaned in when the question was asked, they all had the same question.
Mike was shocked. He looked at the teacher, unsure what to say.
The teacher said, “No, this isn’t Jesus. It is His Brother.”
Without hesitation, the boy wrapped his arms around Mike’s neck and said “I can tell.”
We grow up singing “I am a child of God.”
We quote each week in young women’s “I am a beloved daughter of Heavenly parents.”
But sometimes, it is hard for us to be like that little boy and be able to tell...for ourselves and for others.
Like that classic “one dollar bill” analogy, it doesn’t matter how torn or crumpled or dirty that dollar bill is, it is still worth a dollar.
Likewise, our worth is set. And it is great in the sight of God.
“This is a paradox of man: compared to God, man is nothing; yet we are everything to God. While against the backdrop of infinite creation we may appear to be nothing, we have a spark of eternal fire burning within our breast.” (Dieter Uchtdorf).
Life brings curve balls. Sometimes we may feel a bit crumpled.
But just like that little boy, God can always tell our divine nature.
Our worth is set.
No matter what situation you find yourself in, “Look unto the rock from whence ye are hewn.” (2 Nephi 8:1).
And let that Rock be your foundation.
Art by Caitlin Connolly
[Story paraphrased from “The Visitor,” by Ken Merrell, from the May 2000 New Era.]