Five Foot Nothing

“I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made …” (Psalms 139:14a)

When my daughter Rebekah was eight years old she told me the story of Amy Carmichael — an Irish woman who followed God to India where she eventually founded a mission and orphanage in Dohnavur. As a young child Amy often wished that she had blue eyes like her little brother’s rather than the brown eyes she had been born with. In fact, at night before going to bed, she would often pray that Jesus would change her eye color. Jumping out of bed in the morning, Amy would run to the mirror to see her new blue eyes and was disappointed when her prayers were never answered.

When God called her to minister in India, Amy finally realized God’s wisdom in giving her brown eyes. Often criticized by colleagues for her unorthodox methods, she wore Indian dress and dyed her light skin with strong, dark coffee. She often traveled  hundreds of miles on India’s hot dusty roads to save a child from the life of being a temple servant. And because Amy Carmichael had brown eyes she was able to gain the acceptance of the Indian people and allowed to enter the temples where she rescued hundreds of children.

Wow! I think God knew what He was doing when He gave Amy Carmichael brown eyes!I can’t say that I’ve ever wanted blue eyes. Mine are dark brown and I’ve always been partial to them. My nemesis has always been my height. I topped out at 60 inches in junior high which I affectionately dubbed, “five foot nothing.”  “Stand up, Kathy,” they would often say. “I am,” I would answer. I’ve never enjoyed being short but like Amy, I’ve learned that God can and DOES use every detail of our creation in his work.

Take a long look at yourself in the mirror. There may be some things that you’re not happy about but its important to realize that God created you the way he did for his greater purpose. Yes, it’s easy to obsess about weight or the fact we don’t look like a super model. It’s even easier to get sidetracked from God’s truth and start thinking like the world that tells us physical appearance is the most important quality we can have or that our intelligence, talents, and achievements can bring us power and wealth.

But, realize this; everything about you was created to bring honor and glory to God. Everything. That means our self-worth is based in Christ and his magnificent love for us! Life in Christ is deeper than eye color, weight, height and even beauty. Life’s too short to dwell on what we perceive as imperfections — instead, why not look forward to discovering the life and ministry for which God uniquely crafted us to live!