Perhaps No Subtext Is Necessary

"Don't say anything nice about me. I don't like it when people give me compliments because I know they are not true. I hate myself."

I cringed inwardly as the precious girl in front of me said these words. If I wasn't already familiar with hearing this deep-seated shame oozing out of her, I think my face would have contorted into astonishment. The world had taught her to hate herself. It would surely be an uphill battle to invite her into a different story.

When I look at her, I see clever wit, impressive athleticism, and an easily identifiable beauty and intelligence. She had come to embrace a different set of identifiers, though:

Failure 

Ugly

Nuisance

Stupid

Nothing

I try to imagine her as a little baby. When I scoop up a newborn, I do not trace her with my finger and identify all her faults. No matter how wrinkly or red-faced she is, I can only inhale her preciousness. What if we looked at all of humanity through this same lens? What if we took care to mine the preciousness from every human being we encounter this week? 

In marvelous poetic form, the author of Genesis tells a story of the Divine fashioning a majestic creation, of which humanity was the crown. What was spoken over this incredible work of art? "It was good." It was good.

Pleasant

Excellent

Valuable

Right

How would our interactions with people change if we led with this foundation of love? It was good.

That driver cutting you off? The Divine called her good.
That sweet child throwing a temper tantrum? The God of the Universe called him valuable.
That coworker driving you nuts? Fashioned to be excellent.
That person with whom you disagree? She is the crown of all that was created, pleasant to God.

That person you stare at and sometimes degrade in the mirror? The Divine looks at you and says, "You are good." 

Too often I think we land on the broken and depraved, dismissing this notion of goodness planted inside humanity by the Creator of all that is. That precious girl who told me she hates herself? Yeah, she hurts people and punches holes in walls. She runs away and screams profanities at those trying to love her. It's not difficult to identify her brokenness. But God first proclaimed goodness over what was created. Sometimes I think the most sacred and important work is uncovering this goodness.

What if we responded to brokenness by re-identifying what is good and precious, rather than highlighting what is broken? When that sweet one lashes out at me, she doesn't need to be told that she is broken and bad...it is that message of brokenness and badness that likely caused her to hurt me in the first place. She needs to know that she is excellent, valuable, and worthy of love. She needs to know that I see her for who she really is, what she was fashioned to be:

Good.

Loved by the Creator of the Universe. 

...I tend to think there is no subtext necessary.