Re-Thinking Self-Worth

A few months ago, our team gathered to brainstorm the theme for this year’s camp season. The group landed on “I’m Important.” I was not immediately on board. I wrestled with the idea and questioned whether this was really the direction we should go, but in the end, I was outvoted.

A few days before camp began, I was out searching for last-minute supplies. These were items easy to find in the U.S., but surprisingly difficult to locate in our small town in Honduras. As I walked down the street, a man on crutches stopped me. He opened the conversation by saying how happy he was to meet someone like me.

“Me?” I asked, still caught off guard by the interruption.

“Yes, you. You are so much better than the brown people…” he began, attempting to flatter me while degrading himself and his own race.

I cannot recall another moment when a supposed compliment offended me so deeply. I stopped him immediately. “No, no, no,” I said. “We are equals. I am no better than you.”

“Well, in God’s eyes, I suppose…” he replied.

It was painfully clear that he held a very low view of himself. He spoke of being unworthy, unable to work because of his injured leg, and limited by a lack of education. As we continued talking, the conversation shifted toward challenging the lies he believed about himself and encouraging him to connect with a local church in a nearby town.

Later, I realized just how significant this year’s camp theme truly was. I have long known that many Hondurans place others on pedestals, often lowering themselves in the process. But this former military man, roughly my own age, showed me just how deeply rooted these beliefs can be.

God teaches us that each person is unique and important to Him. He has a plan for our lives, and our value is not defined by this world. My prayer is that everyone who attended camp, whether as a participant or a volunteer, would be transformed and begin to see themselves as God sees them: His priceless children.