In John 17, before Jesus and His disciples went into the garden where Jesus would be arrested, Jesus looked up to heaven and said a beautiful prayer. Jesus prayed that we would be sent into the world as His holy people in verses 18-19; “Just as You sent Me into the world, I am sending them into the world. And I give Myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by Your truth.”

As Jesus prepared to exit planet Earth, He wanted us to know that He was giving us an eternally significant mission on His way out. Jesus was handing off responsibility to us as believers to go out into the world as He Himself did, to tell others about God’s truth. Wait a minute. Jesus is God’s son with authority over everyone and He expects us to just pick things up where He left off? Is Jesus being serious right now? Jesus must have forgotten that I’m selfish and grouchy, and I don’t have the ability to multiply fish. That’s like President Trump handing me the keys to the White House and telling me to take a stab at running the entire country. Pretty sure I’m not qualified. 

I have to remind myself that Jesus does not look at us by our shortcomings, but as eternal beings made in God’s image, and qualified by Himself when we trust in Jesus. When I practice viewing myself in the perspective that Jesus does, it begins to improve my self-worth and how I view others. It begins to positively shape how I approach all areas of my life. 

I encourage you to spend some time today thinking about yourself as an eternal being, justified by Jesus, sent to planet Earth to fulfill a mission from God before you return to your home in heaven, and see how that reshapes your view of the day!