Before I knew God it bothered me to hear that phrase... I told myself, “listen to this self-righteous holier-than-thou’person, shoving their religion in my face”.
I spent the early part of my so-called ‘formative years’ as a non-Christian, non-churched, pretender. I don’t mean I pretended to be non-Christian and non-churched – I was both of those things. I mean I pretended in every other facet of my life. If you had a conversation with me, the odds of you ever hearing anything true about me, my thoughts, or my feelings were slim. I lied about everything because I didn’t want anyone to know the real me. I didn’t like the real me, so why would I think anyone else wanted to get to know him?
It wasn’t until Christ pursued me – against my will – that I started to really look at myself and realize that I had a massive, gaping wound inside of me that was not healing. I had issues. I was ugly inside.
Guess what – we all are ugly inside without a healthy spirit. It was when Jesus worked on my spirit that I could feel His Spirit creeping in. As He began rearranging my heart and slowly breathing His life into me that I saw myself differently. I was ugly – I still am – as long as it was only me… But with the life-giving Spirit inside me, I can feel that beautiful Spirit of God that enriches my very soul, changing me into who I am meant to be.
Only when we see ourselves clearly… only when we give up on ourselves, do we open the door for Christ to come in and make us beautiful. We are creations of a Holy God, and the only created being made in His image! Until we accept that, we cannot truly accept ourselves. So yes I’ll say it… what a God we serve!
But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. (Colossians 3:8-10)
#LoveMatters