“Even the hairs of your head have all been counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.” // Luke 12:7

I have a tendency to be a Martha—always searching for something to be done, some way I can make myself useful and contribute—rather than being like her sister Mary, who sat meditatively at the feet of Jesus (see Luke 10:38-42). In praying about this recently, I realized there was an emphasis on the word “I” in the phrasing: “How can I make myself useful?” And through continued prayer, the Lord has slowly been helping me to understand that my usefulness, my worthiness, my anything, is not dependent on me.

I cannot make myself useful, worthy, lovable, etc. God has already done so.

In today’s First Reading, Paul informs the Roman Christians that it was Abraham’s belief in God, not his works, that “was credited to him as righteousness” (Romans 4:3). What a beautiful reminder that it is not what we accomplish that makes us righteous in God’s eyes, but rather, in our believing God—believing in God’s mercy and goodness and indescribable love for us—that makes us so.

In a world that is so consumed with ideas of productivity and usefulness, it is hard to let that sink in. We so often measure our value in what we produce and how quickly we can do so. But in the eyes of God, our value is found simply in being His.

“Even the hairs of your head have all been counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows” (Luke 12:7).

Sister, let us remember that it is not what we can do that makes us valued by Our Beloved. I invite you today to take an inventory, not of what you did that was “useful,” but of where you noticed God and the little reminders He shows that you are loved.