Everywhere we turn, forces are pulling at the edges of our humanity. Some are loud and obvious; a few are quiet and insidious. In either case, these voices chip away at the truth, denying that we are created in the image of God and meant for dignity, love, and belonging. They take what the Lord calls good and pervert it for their own purposes.
Our humanity diminishes when our systems treat people like they are numbers rather than neighbors. Consumerism reduces us to what we buy. Bureaucracy negates our names. Prejudice and biases rob people of the God-given worth that no one has the right to take away.
Our humanity diminishes when we live at a pace too fast for our souls. Busyness tells us we’re only valuable if we’re productive. What have you done for me lately? Entertainment numbs us rather than nourishing us. Our success culture teaches us that worth is earned, not given.
Our humanity diminishes when fear closes our hearts and when cynicism becomes more natural than trust, when despair whispers that hope is gone, when self-centeredness blinds us to the needs of others.
Our humanity diminishes most of all when we forget the sacred truth: every person bears the image of God. Every soul carries eternal weight and every life has a place in the story of creation and redemption.
But here is the good news: what diminishes us is not the final word. It doesn’t have the final say. The Divine restores, redeems, and reminds us who we are. It is possible through grace, beauty, community, and faith, that we recover our humanity again.
Augustine of Hippo
The image of God, once impressed upon the soul, cannot be obliterated. Sin mars it, but grace restores it.
Maybe that’s the work of this moment: to resist what diminishes us and to embrace what restores. What gives you life? What nourishes your soul?
Matthew 22:37-40 ESV
And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
Until my next post…
Be salty, stay lit.
Rainer Bantau —The Devotional Guy™
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The Devotional Guy™ 
Thank you for this observation, Dana. And thanks for reading my blog!
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“Our humanity diminishes most of all when we forget the sacred truth: every person bears the image of God.” So well said, thank you.
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