I'm not the one that believes that God has a 'SPECIAL' place for me because I'm SPECIAL.
God has a 'special' place for us all because HE is 'special'.
Prove this please.
So being made in His image, with a conscience that allows you to determine that there is a right and a wrong so you can consciously strive to do good, as opposed to an animal which has no such capability, does not make us special?
Heck, being able to build things like airplanes makes us special. He said we are wonderfully made and we certainly are, especially when compared to inhuman animals.