Feelings of worthlessness and insignificance plague all of us at some time or other in life. We wonder whether our lives have any meaning.
There are times when we feel like a blade of grass in the garden of Eden - absolutely insignificant and useless. We look around at others whose lives seem to be much more purposeful than our own. But each and every life has a purpose in God's plan as Dmitri's experience with Sathya Sai shows. Dmitri definitely became a squirrel in the Lord's bridge building.
The feelings of uselessness stem from a lack of faith and self-confidence which are not contradictory to each other. Faith is the confidence in the God outside while self-confidence is the faith in the God within as explained beautifully by Swami through the sparrow's story. But such faith can come only when one is not a part-time devotee who gets only 'daily wages'.
Ultimately, the Truth of oneness of purpose of every life sets to rest this debate comprehensively. This is a talk delivered in the Satsangh Hall at Prasanthi Nilayam on 21st March, 2016.