Self-Esteem Vs. Christ-Esteem

I hear people talk about how important it is to raise children with good self-esteem.  We want them to know how good they are, how much they deserve in life.  We want them to be confident and to be satisfied with themselves, patting them on the back, telling them to buck up and to remember how great they are.  How can anyone argue with these sentiments?  These are good ways, good teachings, it should produce a great generation of people, right?  Depends on whether we want a generation of “me first” or a generation of “you first” people.

There is a better confidence, a better teaching, a better way.

Real self-worth, real self-esteem and our real identity comes from knowing who we really are.  It must be so hard to have core beliefs that involve thinking we are the product of millions and millions of random mistakes.  Yet, when we know the truth, when we start to have eyes that really see and ears that really hear, when we come to understand who we are for real, children of a Living God, everything else comes together.  Only when we know Him can we have a true to form identity and an unshakable confidence.  Only when we fully realize how much He loves us, then we start to understand our worth.  I love Psalm 139:17 “How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.  They cannot be numbered!”

The world we live in is always measuring each other up.  Who lives in the nicest house, who has the newest car, who has the latest gadget, who has the most degrees, the best job, the best body, the most money … it’s never-ending.

Our value is not things … our value is who we are.

There is nothing wrong with having things, lots of good things.  However, when we hold tightly to lots of good things instead of the One Good Thing, we lack seeing the big picture and the whole point in life.

I have two darling daughters and I want them to have good self-esteem, so I tell them what their worth is.  They are priceless, loved with an everlasting love by the Master of the Universe.  I want them to be world-changers, to look around and see people, to have compassion and love for others as well as for themselves.

Do we want the next generation to be “me first” people or “you first” people?