Dignity

Psalm 8:5 - "You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowded him with glory and honour."

Psalm 149:4-5 - "For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation. Let the saints rejoice in this honour and sing for joy on their beds."

Dignity is the quality of worth and significance that every single one of us has been given because we were all created in the image of God. There are two aspects of dignity; recognising your own worth before God and secondly, recognising that same worth in other people.

As part of human nature we have a tendency to go against this. We often find ourselves ranking in importance, from insignificant to of high importance, based on worldly goods such as job title and type of car driven.

A true view of dignity will encourage you to see others as God sees them: entirely worthy of your love and respect, no matter where they live or what they do. This creates in you a deep respect for others as you build them up rather than devaluing them.

On the other side of dignity, when you behave in a respectful way, have strong faith and good self control, and are loving and patient you show personal dignity. And as dignity becomes fully engrained in you and you realise how esteemed you are by God, you will find that the opinions of others will matter less.

 

Can you listen and accept just one opinion - God's???