Jokingly, I said ‘Yes, I’m that fat, bald, old guy around here.” A lady in the room, overhearing my remark, chided me – “No, you are a beloved child of God!” She did not understand my self-deprecating humor, but she had a point. We tend to act in ways that align with what we believe to be true about ourselves. Plenty of lies find a home in our minds, don’t they? A phrase somone else thinks is ‘cute’ can cut to the heart. A word of encouragement may stick with us for life! But, what do we understand about ourselves? How do we form that all important self-image, without arrogance, without self-deception, or without adopting the toxic opinions expressed by our detractors?
When I a child, I remember entering a place at the county
fair that was a maze of mirrors. Each one distorted the image reflected. Some
made me appear short, others made me tall. Some made my head grotesquely out of
proportion to the rest of my body. Ohers made my feet huge! It was called a ‘fun house.’ I do not remember it that way! To me the experience was disorienting and I
was glad to escape the twisted world and to step back into reality.
You and I must deal with distortions and
distractions, misrepresentations of ourselves, in everyday life. The reflections
we find the faces and words of others are not always accurate, sometimes distorted
by their own bias, prejudice, fears, selfish motives, and past experiences. We can become a slave to a fake image,
desperate for love and acceptance, willing to be governed by lies and
manipulation.
A mirror that reflects an accurate image is quite valuable. It shows us the spinach stuck in our teeth or the stain on our shirt we did not notice when we put it on. Seeing ourselves that way gives us the chance to correct a problem or even feel good about ourselves. What a gift is that person who truly loves us enough to hold up a mirror – truthfully pointing out flaws and hopefully offering encouragement.
Here is what I KNOW about you and me: we are, in fact, beloved children of God! John reminds us of that fact when he writes – “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God!” (1 John 3:1) In a well-known text we learn that God’s love is not earned, but given! "God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16, NIV) He is for us, not against us. He sees us as valuable not because we are attractive in some way, but simply for who we are. What a powerful message for the formation of self-image.
Perhaps you jump quickly to the word ‘sinner’ and feel that
God must surely hate you. That is a distortion. Yes, we are sinners, but our
failures are matched with God’s grace, our need of life met by His offer of
rebirth through Christ Jesus. Paul exults in the gift of love and is inspired
to teach us that "there is no condemnation for those who belong to
Christ Jesus. For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through
Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death." (Romans
8:1-2, NLT)
Our sins and failures, our alienation from God, our Father Creator, our insecurities are all met with Jesus’ love. When He forgives it is complete, not partial. Where He is invited to save, it is a finished thing and allows us to change the image – sinner to saint, broken to whole, dead to alive! Grab this declaration of the Spirit and live in the truth. "Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it!" (2 Corinthians 5:17, The Message)
Feeling like you are trapped in a fun-house full of mirrors
that confuse you? Bow your head in
prayer, offer yourself to Christ Jesus, simply, wholly, and in faith. Begin to
know who you are in His love. You are enough! You are worthy! You are loved!
Here is the word from the Word. Believe it, receive it, and live it! "I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God." (Ephesians 3:17-19, NLT)
________
(Video of this blog at this link)
Jesus loves me this I know
For the Bible tells me so
Little ones to Him belong
They are weak but He is strong
Jesus loves me He who died
Heaven's gate to open wide
He will wash away my sin
Let His little child come in
Yes Jesus loves me
Yes Jesus loves me
Yes Jesus loves me
The Bible tells me so
Jesus loves me and I pray
He will keep me 'til that day
Keep me standing true and strong
Singing heaven's joyful song
Jesus loves me may I be
Ever faithful knowing He
Walks beside me ev'ry day
Shines His light along the way
Jesus loves me He will stay
Close beside me all the way
If I love Him when I die
He will take me home on high
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