"Beautiful" by Mercy Me

This world can be a very cruel place.  Too many people feel that the only way they can build themselves up is to tear someone else down.  Many of us isolate our feelings from most others, only opening up to a few choice friends in whom we feel we can trust.  The greatest betrayals are when even those trusted friends thoughtlessly, or intentionally cause us the greatest emotional harm. 

It's hard to feel good about yourself when you get rejected.  You feel like if they don't value you for your looks, your mind, your personality, then why should you?  Because there is one that values you more than you could ever value yourself.  He thought you were worth so much that he suffered torture and gave his only life to make sure you would be safe for all eternity.  He is in heaven right now, right this instant, looking down on you, reaching out through the immensity of time and space to surround you with his own tender love.  To let you know that everything will be okay. 

To Him, you are beautiful, you are treasured, you are irreplaceable.  You are in the middle of a dark valley on your journey of life, but his loving arms await you in the warm sunshine.  If you look up to Him, He will send the sunshine to where you are and begin to heal your broken heart.

"Beautiful" by Mercy Me

Days will come when you don't have the strength
When all you hear is you're not worth anything
Wondering if you ever could be loved
And if they truly saw your heart they'd see too much

You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You are made for so much more than all of this
You're beautiful
You're beautiful
You are treasured, You are sacred, You are His
You're beautiful

And praying that you have the heart to find
Cause you are more than what is hurting you tonight
For all the lies you've held inside so long
And they are nothing in the shadow of the cross

[Chorus]

Before you ever took a breath
Long before the world began
Of all the wonders He possessed
There was one more precious

Of all the earth and skies above
You're the one He madly loves enough to die

[Chorus]

"The Middle" by Jimmy Eat World

Peer pressure can be a frightful, destructive force, especially among teenagers. Coming to consciousness as an adult in a child's body, it is usually very important to teens that they "fit in" and are respected by their peers. I often think, if they could only have the benefit of five years hindsight, they would see how ultimately unimportant the things are that often monopolize their time and worrying: gaining the admiration of so-called friends that are mean to them, the latest fashions, experience in a romantic relationship, etc.

I would tell them, don't worry so much! There's still time for you to come into yourself and find your true friends. Adolescence is "the middle" of a bumpy ride for just about everyone, and insecure false friends make it worse for everyone. Just be yourself and be happy with it. Your true friends will recognize you and appreciate you for who you are.

"The Middle" by Jimmy Eat World

Hey,
Don't write yourself off yet.
It's only in your head you feel left out,
Or looked down on.
Just try your best,
Try everything you can.
And don't you worry what they tell themselves
When you're away.

It just takes some time,
little girl, you're in the middle of the ride.
Everything, everything will be just fine,
Everything, everything will be alright.

Hey,
You know they're all the same.
You know you're doing better on your own,
So don't buy in.
Live right now.
Yeah, just be yourself.
It doesn't matter if it's good enough
For someone else.

It just takes some time,
little girl, you're in the middle of the ride.
Everything, everything will be just fine,
Everything, everything will be alright.

Hey, don't write yourself off yet.
It's only in your head you feel left out,
Or looked down on.
Just do your best,
Do everything you can.
And don't you worry what their bitter hearts
Are gonna say.

It just takes some time,
little girl, you're in the middle of the ride.
Everything, everything will be just fine,
Everything, everything will be alright.