You Are Special

When I was a teenager, I had a lot of irrational questions and concerns. I felt that perhaps there was more to the “good news” of the gospel that people didn’t really consider.

For example, I had this crazy idea that because God loves all of us, that must mean that His love isn’t actually worth all that much. I made up some dumb analogy to explain what felt true to me. 

I told myself that if everyone received one million dollars, then our money wouldn’t be worth anything anymore. Inflation would destroy the purchasing power, and our million dollars might actually be worth a million doll hairs. (Did you ever have uncles try to pull this joke on you?!)

My teenage brain was trying to make sense of my internal desire to feel loved and valued, and I believed that if others were loved and valued too, then I no longer could be. 

Before I move on, let me discredit those wild ideas from teenage Kyra with a much wiser version of myself: We simply cannot compare God’s love to earthly analogies, especially ones using something as fickle as money. God’s love is eternal, infinite, expanding, whole, and forever. God’s love is perfect. He can and DOES love us each, more than we understand or can imagine. (See here for a post about God’s perfect love.)

Another concern I had was regarding the phrase, “God knows you by name.”

You’d think that was amazing, incredible, and joyous news (and it TOTALLY is). Because just think of it; many individuals live life day to day, wondering what the meaning behind all of this is. Why am I here? They think. Who am I? They wonder.

One day, someone tells them that they are a child of God. I can only imagine their pleasantly shocked smile when they exclaim, “You mean to tell me that the God of the universe and the heavens and the angels above and the earth below KNOWS and LOVES me?! Little old me?!”

Yes, it’s true. God knows and loves you. He knows YOUR name.

My teenage self’s reaction was, “What the heck does that mean? He knows my name? Just saying, but Joe down the street knows my name, so who cares? No big deal!”

At a Q&A fireside, my bishop answered my anonymous question, and I’ll never forget what he said.

At the time, one of his daughters was 15. He told us that if she were to get in an accident tomorrow, lose all her memories, and completely forget who she was, he would still know.

He could tell her what her favorite ice cream flavor was, what music she liked to listen to, what her favorite colors were, what she liked to do, and about her character.

She might have forgotten who she was, but he would not. He would still know.

Similarly, a veil of forgetfulness has been placed upon us. We have forgotten who we are. But God remembers. He knows. He knows our deepest fears, our deepest hopes and dreams. He knows our hearts and very soul. He has memories of us from before we came to earth. He knows all of that and more. And, of course, He knows our names.

He knows everything about us, and we are special to Him.

You are special to Him.

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Being special to God has some pretty important implications. 

For one, it means we don’t need the world’s approval or love to be important or valued.

Punchinello learned this too. Max Lucado’s children’s book You Are Special tells the story of Punchinello, a Wemmick who lives in a society where other Wemmicks place gray dots or gold stars on one other, based on appearance, talents, and abilities.

Punchinello isn’t the most attractive or talented Wemmick, so he is covered in dots, and it destroys his self-confidence.

One day, he meets a Wemmick named Lucia who doesn’t have any dots or stars.

Curious, he asks her about it, and she replies that she goes to see Eli, the woodcarver who made them. 

Punchinello decides to give it a try, so he climbs the hill to go talk to Eli.

Eli tells Punchinello that he loves him, that he created him, and that what the other Wemmicks think doesn’t matter. The only opinion that truly matters is Eli’s.

Essentially, Eli tells Punchinello that he is treasured, valued, seen, and special.

Over time, Punchinello’s dots begin to fall off as he stops caring about what other Wemmicks think of him. He starts to believe what Eli said about him—that he is special—and it changes everything.

Like Punchinello, we are treasured, valued, seen, and special to God. God created us in His image, male and female, and He loves us, one by one.

Being special to God means we can find and experience joy regardless of what is happening—or not happening—in our lives (Russell M. Nelson, 2016).

Being special to God means that He has a plan for us, is relentlessly pursuing us, wants what is best for us, is infinitely aware of us, and intimately knows us.

To make this more personal, let me say it again, changing a few words. 

Being special to God means that He has a plan for you, is relentlessly pursuing you, wants what is best for you, is infinitely aware of you, and intimately knows you.

Yes, you.

You are special.

You are special. 

You are special.