Do I Know the Person in the Mirror?

Horrendous.

Eccentric.

Cringy.

Whatever the term, there is something to be said about a toddler’s choice for fashion and the confidence in their choice.  We were once that confident, but somewhere along the way, or maybe even as the years progressed, that spirit slowly trickled away.  We found ourselves stuck between past heartaches, the opinions of others, and the conflict of comparison.  We continuously placed our capabilities on a linear passage between these two rocks and often fell short.

Every.

Single.

Time.

Now, we look in the mirror and see someone we don’t even recognize.  She’s so far away from who she once was.  The face may resemble the same person, but the inside is as dark as night.  However, we have hope.  Although we have become unrecognizable to ourselves, we are fully known and recognized by God.  How comforting know He recognizes and knows us.

Luke 12:7 is a gentle reminder that every hair on our head, well, it’s numbered.  (Yes, friend, even those gray ones you try so desperately to hide.) He fully knows every ounce of our existence.

He sees us as we are standing there.

Our self-judging and comparing, we began tearing apart His very creation.

I believe His heart aches as He watches this, His masterpiece, driving down a dark tunnel on the “Woe-is-me-express.” He knows that our most fulfilling life is in being the person He CREATED us to be, not in some diluted version of what the world WANTS us to be.  To love God means to love ourselves.  In every aspect.

Mind.

Body.

Soul.

And even reflection.

When we view ourselves through God’s divine lens, it produces a more profound relationship within ourselves.  Our mindset shifts from seeking the love and approval of others to anchoring our identity and self-worth into the love of God.  Think about it.  If we were perfect, death and resurrection would not be necessary.  So, to dismiss God’s grace is to deny the power of the blood that Jesus shed on the cross.  Grace gives us a little wiggle room to make mistakes and, at times, offers a hard pill to swallow when we’ve completely gotten it wrong.  It isn’t an excuse to negate our inner conflicts, but it is an opportunity to practice self-compassion and be kind to ourselves.  In extending grace, we should realize that rejecting it only hurts us and keeps us from our most authentic self, the one God called us to be.

When we embark on this journey of loving our Christlike reflection, we better equip ourselves to point others back to that same voice of truth.  We can’t outrun those intrusive insecurities, and Satan knows it.  But we can run into the secure arms of our Heavenly Father.  He defines you; He defines me; He defines us.  Although those definitions might look slightly different from the next, we were all created with the same perfect image.

Stop listening to the lies and start loving yourself for what you already are—a beautiful image of Christ.