You get As. You get Cs.
You are in band. You play chess. You like jumping rope.
You have big ears. You are short for your age.
Your hair is curly. You have a huge birthmark on your arm.
You can barely swing a bat. You can dunk a basketball.
You sing off-key. You are the star of the show.
You race dirt bikes. You read for eight hours a day.
You wear glasses. You are in a wheelchair.
You love opera. You don’t care for music.
You have autism. You started high school at age 11.
Your appearance and your interests set you apart. They are what makes you different from the kids around you. It’s true that God made you the way he wants you to be. He doesn’t look at you the way other people do. “God does not see as humans see. Humans look at outward appearances, but the Lord looks into the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).
When God looks at every heart, he sees that on our own we don’t like him; we aren’t able to love him. Because he loves us and made us in his image, he sent Jesus on a rescue mission. Because Jesus kept his heart pure while he lived on earth and took God’s punishment for our sins, we are forgiven and washed clean.
Like King David we get to say, “Hide your face from my sins, and wipe out all that I have done wrong. Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew a faithful spirit within me” (Psalm 51:9,10).
Now when God looks at you, he looks inside and sees your clean heart—no matter how different you look on the outside.
