You are a unique event that happens once in a lifetime. There has never been another person like you in all of human history. After you are gone, there will not be another like it. There are eight million people on the planet. You are the only one. You are unique!
Les Brown, motivational speaker, spoke in an interview. He stressed that everyone is unique. He reasoned, “You have to be if you survived as one out of 40 million sperm.” He continued, “You were born to win. You were born to do something valuable to the universe.”
You have all heard the saying, “They broke the mold when he (or she) was born.” If we were made from molds, this would be true for each one of us. We wouldn’t be number 112 among 600 models. Each of us would be number 1.
Tanya, my wife, purchased a new dress and left one of her tags on her dresser. It was a very fancy tag with a scripted message and a border. The tag was there when I got dressed for work the next day. It read, “The variations and nuances of shading and the uneven texture are what gives this garment its unique character and are not to be considered imperfections.” It got me thinking. This tag is applicable to every one of us.
God could send a similar message to us if we were each born with a tag. Each of us has different shades and textures. Each of us has a unique personality that should not be mistaken for imperfections.
Which person would you like to be? They asked the question of fifty-one Miss America Pageants participants years ago. I remember that around 80 percent of them answered the question, saying they would choose themself if they had to. I was first proud of the high proportion who chose to answer themselves. I began to wonder about the 20% remaining. Based on the opportunities that lay ahead, why didn’t they choose to be themselves?
We all need to be happy that we are who and what we are. You are not like anyone else. You will fail if you try to be someone else in this world. Only you can be who and what you are. We must do our best with what we have.
I sometimes feel that I should wear a sign around my neck that reads, “Work in Progress.” I know that God is not finished with me yet. Every day I live, I realize that there’s more I can do for myself. Not the man sitting next to me or the woman on the TV screen.
I recently bought a framed sign that says “The world needs who you were made to be.” I agree.
I saw a framed print in a bookstore that read, “God danced the day you were born. You are loved. You are God’s gift and his personal possession. You are God’s gift of love, a gift for all people. You are his.” Wow!
Your masterpiece must be you. And aren’t we each a masterpiece? Aren’t we each a masterpiece more spectacular that the greatest work of art that any of mankind has ever made?
We were each made by God and God doesn’t make junk!
Psalms 139:13-16 puts it best, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. You are a fearfully and wonderfully created being, which I praise. Your works are amazing, as I know. When I was created in the secret place, my frame was not hidden from your eyes. Your eyes saw my unformed body when I was woven together in deep earth. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
You are the masterpiece I challenge you to be. You are the first edition. Don’t waste time wishing that you were someone else. You are special. Be proud of your uniqueness. Be yourself. Use the opportunity you’ve been given to develop your potential. Use the three-foot circle around you to your advantage. Sometimes, that’s all you have control of.
You are unique and beautifully made.
Rick Kraft is a local lawyer, syndicated columnist and Executive Director of Leadership Roswell Program. To submit comments, contributions, or ideas, e-mail to [email protected] or write to P.O. Box 850 Roswell, NM 88202-0850