i believe those who THINK they are righteous are self-deluded. still, that does not mean humans were not created, or were unloved. what gets me is when folks who do NOT see their worth try to convince OTHERS they're not worth anything either. cuz then those ask 'well, if you who bore me don't care, then who is there that would'. but as we know from true friends, it's not what you did or where you've been that matters; it's who you would choose to be if given the best circumstances. in the OT when it says god weighs the heart, to my thinking this is what he's referring to. the words 'i'm a good christian' will never pass my lips. i just TRY to be one. and i fail many times, where i've recognized it and where i haven't. so i will always be equal to a non-believer in that way, at least.

my husband forges. that's an interest science all in itself, bringing steel to a temp that a magnet won't stick, rearranging the molecules! stinky, too... heehee