We Are All God’s Masterpiece!

“We are God’s masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Ephesians 2:10

Today is World Down Syndrome Day and I’m celebrating everyone I know who has an extra 21^st chromosome!

Just because a person was born with an extra chromosome resulting in Down syndrome, it doesn’t mean God made an error. Far from it. Ephesians 2:10 affirms that God considers all of us as his workmanship. God doesn’t take his hands off those chromosomes for a nanosecond when he is knitting them together in a mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13).

And although children and adults with Down syndrome may have distinguishing physical characteristics, it’s what’s inside that counts: characteristics like patience, perseverance, kindness, and did I mention joy?! So many of my friends who live with Down syndrome exhibit such joy and kindness. They enjoy serving and they love working, when possible, in the community.

Often parents struggle with fears about bringing a child with a disability into the world. Parents of babies diagnosed in the womb with Down syndrome are often pressured to abort. However, the same parents are bolstered by recent campaigns in which people with Down syndrome talk about misconceptions concerning their worth, happiness and limits. These people with Down syndrome are reclaiming the national narrative for the kingdom as they confidently speak about their lives as entrepreneurs, actors, innovators, models, and advocates, just to name a few.

Jeremiah 1:5 says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born, I set you apart.”

Whatever our external or internal characteristics, God created us just the way he desired for a specific purpose only we can achieve. That purpose? It is to bring him honor and glory in a way unique to our lives and circumstances. I remember talking to a teenager about her little brother Isaiah who had Down syndrome; she said, “Isaiah’s ministry is to inspire everyone with his amazing smile!”

Long before he was born, God set apart Isaiah for the purpose of making others glad. Some would say it doesn’t count for much, but not so – it brings God glory!

The Bible says so much more that can shape our perspective about the worth of individuals born with disabilities. They are made in God’s image (Genesis 1:27), they can be one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28), and as I shared earlier, God has a hand in knitting them together in the womb (Psalm 139), even when it includes an extra chromosome.

So please, let’s follow the mandate of 2 Corinthians 5:16, “from now on, we regard no one from a worldly point of view.”

Instead of listening to the world’s messages extolling self-sufficiency and outward appearance, let’s affirm the value of persons with Down syndrome as our friends. Let’s treat them as we would any friend – let’s spend time with people who have Down syndrome; let’s choose them, prefer their company, invite them on outings, employ them, sit with them at church, and embrace them as part of the family of God. It’s a giant step toward changing the cultural mindset that a life with Down syndrome is not worth living.

God’s message for people with Down syndrome is the same message for each one of us. He created us with a purpose and life is worth living, no matter the diagnosis.

Pray with me: Lord, thank you for your amazing handiwork that you create in the womb: babies born with Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, or spina bifida… babies born with limb differences, autism, or muscular dystrophy. Thank you that you have a unique purpose for their lives that will bring you honor and glory. Please put an end to the culture of death and the culture of self-sufficiency that casts doubt about the value of each life. In Jesus’s name, Amen.