Worth.

It's a heavy word that can cause heavy feelings. It's something most of us have struggled with at some point; I know I have. I spent a lot of my teenage and early adult years constantly wondering what I was worth, looking for value in other people, worrying if I was good enough and if I was doing everything "right". To be honest, I still let myself struggle with those things from time to time as a thirty year old mom of three. Being in the age of the "mommy wars" and the never ending "mom-shaming" doesn't help matters one bit. We see it every single day on social media. We may even see it in our real life circles: mom's bible studies, play date groups, work break rooms. It's sadly become a constant background noise. And if you let it start to define you, you'll drown from the weight of it. So today I just want to make a few things clear.

Your worth is not in your job title or stay-at-home-mom title.

Your worth is not in your kids' healthy and hand crafted lunches or their store bought lunchables.

Your worth is not in your clean house or in your dust covered mantle.

Your worth is not in your meal prep skills or your pizza ordering skills.

Your worth is not in your perfectly designed or perfectly destroyed-by-kids living room.

Your worth is not in your instagram feed.

Your worth is not in your group of friends or number of followers.

Your worth is not in how long you breastfed or if you formula fed from day one.

Your worth is not in your natural childbirth or in your scheduled c-section.

Your worth is not in your pinterest-inspired outfits or the yoga pants you pulled out of the dirty laundry basket.

Your worth is not in your sidle hustle, or lack thereof.

Your worth is not in when your baby slept through the night (or didn't).

Your worth is not in the parties you host or get invited to, or the ones where you didn't make the guest list.

Your worth is not in the amount of kids you have or don't have.

Your worth is not in how long it took you to get pregnant, or if you can't.

Your worth is not in how long you've been married, or how many times you have been married. Or if you are single.

Your worth is not in your kids' outfits, smocked or thrift store.

Your worth is not in how many times you did or didn't hit the gym this week.

Your worth is not in that number on the scale or on the tag of your jeans.

Your worth is not what others say about you.

Your worth is not even in what you say about yourself, because we all know we can be our very own worst critic.

Girl, you are worth so much more than you give yourself credit for. And if you are struggling with defining yourself on all of the things you do, or as is the case with a lot of women, on all of the things you DON'T do...stop!

What you do is not who you are.

What you don't do is not who you are.

Your worth and value have been set by someone way bigger than you or anyone else, and there's not a single thing you can or can't do that will change that.

Worth can be defined as the amount you would pay for something, right? Do you know what God has paid for you?

Jesus.

(mic drop)

I'm worth the same as Jesus. You are worth the same as Jesus. I know this might cause some of you to clutch your pearls or mutter "blasphemy" under your breath, but please stick with me. You've heard it a hundred times..."For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son..." right? There it is, in scripture. God gave up Jesus for you. And that same God resurrected Jesus for you. And He's alive today so you can be alive in Him, too. God believed you were worthy, that you are worthy. So it's time for you to start believing it, too. 

Please let that really soak in today. Stop finding your worth and identity in things that don't last and things that aren't true, things that will never truly fill you up. He has defined your worth and made you right. You don't have to try to measure up. He loves you so much and believes you are worth the biggest price imaginable.