Do all people have standards?

The brilliant? The foolish? The...average?

To be honest, I think standards are important.

Standards such as expectations for me from my professors.

Standards set by myself, like: what I’m hoping to accomplish in my four years of collegiate studies, as well as the qualities I’m looking for in a potential spouse *insert a deep sigh and dreamy eyes here*.

Standards.

Good standards.

Standards set for me by my parents to work hard, be diligent, show compassion, share the joy of the Lord, and to walk with Him daily. There is a memory that I have of a time when I was talking to my dad about how full and busy and rigorous my life was at that point in time. His response was one I will never forget, and still think on it often. It’s nothing special, nor profound. But he believed in what he said: “You can do it.” By believing in those four words, I saw him believing in me. But not because of anything I could do on my own. My dad believed I could do great things by letting God work through me, to my fullest potential, for Christ’s glory.

Standards.

Standards that I forget about.

Standards that I fail to reach.

It didn’t take long to feel completely average when I arrived at college. I should have expected to be humbled a bit when I started studying at a place that is referred to as “the Harvard of Christian liberal arts colleges”. I was shocked, amazed, at the people around me. In an instant I was living among some athletes, artists, actors, musicians, coaches, and professors who were nationally, or internationally, recognized and even highly acclaimed.

I felt so average. The concepts of music theory did not come naturally to me. I felt so dumb when I could not correctly sing a simple, short pattern of notes that I had been practicing all week. I felt like an imbecile when I was learning for the first time of a composer my peers had learned about before even coming to college. I felt very weak when I heard of the workouts the various sports teams were taking part in every single day. I didn’t have the most beautiful voice, I wasn’t the prettiest girl on campus, I was simply average.

To say that I still don’t feel completely incompetent and even downright stupid at times would be a lie. Sometimes I feel like I will never become a great singer. More times than not I shrug my shoulders when I catch one last glimpse in the mirror as I walk out the door. But despite these times, I have learned something extremely important:

I am beautiful.

I am intelligent.

I am creative.

I am loved.

My God looks on me and sees those four things. He doesn’t compare me to the next person, He simply sees me for...me. He sees all of my shortcomings and failures, and yet He still calls me His own. Because I am made in His image, I am creative, intelligent. Because He is my Father, I am loved. Because all that I am is found in Him, I am beautiful.

I am average.

Yes, very average.

...

Beautifully average.

"For the Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life." (Job 33:4 NLT)