We should all be ourselves, confidently
Let’s stop being so hard on ourselves, and realize our value and worth in the light of Christ
Humans are often better able to recognize how we think about others than we are able to recognize how we think about ourselves. It is easy for us to judge others, and withhold judgment from ourselves, unless we are nervous and too busy thinking about what others will think about us and neglect such judgment of others. Whatever the circumstances, this notion of thinking about ourselves can really be described as “self-perception,” in essence: how we perceive ourselves.
We often subtly do this, and perhaps even subconsciously. Think about what you would say (or think) if you would. Right now, suspend yourself from reading this article and look in the mirror. Would you admire your facial features, or would you think disdainfully about your visual appearance? Even if these thoughts do not come to mind, it can be easy for us to become upset with our appearances when we realize that we do not look the way we want to.
This can happen to us constantly, when our “master-of-our-own-destiny” type of human will becomes mismatched with how we really feel about ourselves, deep down on the inside. In a way, looking in the mirror is not supposed to necessarily be a positive experience because we should not find ourselves to be anything other than broken and imperfect, unless we blind ourselves to the truth of what lies under the surface and exposes itself through what we see on the outside.
What I am trying to explain is that we are not enough in and of ourselves, even on the outside. The very fact of our worrisome nature to be afraid of how we appear and what others think of us, goes to show that we expect our judgment of others to be reciprocated in a noticeably harsher way. Most of the time, that simply does not happen. People generally do not pay attention to those who are not actively seeking such attention, so these fears really can be just an illusion. This does not cover up the imperfect person that we are on the inside; this just means that we do not need to fear the supposed judgment of others.
Now, I am not encouraging people to feel comforted in this, because that is unrealistic. Even here, we would just be numbing ourselves to the deeper issue. As broken humans, the only thing that can make us whole is, of course, the very thing that Jesus Christ did on the cross to save us. What we see in the mirror no longer applies to us. Even if we can still see our imperfections, God sees us through Christ’s perfection. In this, we should be confident that, despite what others say, nothing on the outside changes how much God loves us, so we should not try to cover up the truly good and innocent aspects of our personality on the terms that we will be judged by others for who the “real” us is. Fortunately, God, unlike us, is a just judge who does not act on subjective whims but who rather wants all people to be saved.
Thus, this is my encouragement to the reader, and to all people. You do not need to be afraid of the person that you are. You do not need to change yourself to make others like you better. You are loved by God the way that you already are, despite your sin and shame because He paid it all for you. You were made to be uniquely the way you are by God, with your personality, your appearances and your story, and no one should tell you to be any different. You are the only “you” in this world, and you are enough in the blood of Jesus Christ.