How we see ourselves affects everything. It affects how we act, what we think, what we say, how we carry ourselves, the decisions we make, and how we live our lives. It affects how determined or driven we are, how passive or controlling we are, and how we treat others.
Awhile back I was reading about the woman caught in the act of adultery in John 8, and a picture of her reaching up to Jesus was included in the devotion. I felt an immediate connection to that picture. I related so much to what that picture was trying to convey. The woman was going to be stoned.
I can relate to all of it. I was never caught in the act of adultery, but I have dealt with shame and sin in my life that has enabled me to look at this picture and be able to see myself. I think many of us could do that, in different ways.
While looking at this picture, the Holy Spirit spoke something so clearly to my heart.
He said, “That is not who you are.“
I knew that was true, but it took seeing this picture to realize part of me was still stuck back there. Jesus has healed my heart and set me free in so many ways over the years.
He has done so much in my life (and continues to), but I started to see that the mental image I had of myself was the same as it used to be. I still saw myself as this woman, except I felt as though I was on my best behavior.
That’s not a heart change. That’s only a behavior change; but God has done so much more than that! Jesus has healed my heart and set me free, and He continues to do this. This is much more than being on my best behavior.
It took seeing and connecting to this picture to realize that I need to change the mental image I have of myself.
Have you given your life to Christ and seen changes come into your life? If so, have you changed your mental picture of yourself to who you are now and who God created you to be?
How often do we stay stuck, out of a picture we hold of ourselves that has never been renewed?
In order to embrace the people God created us to be, we must see ourselves as Jesus does. He doesn’t see us as the people we used to be, and we can’t afford to either. If you have given your life to Christ and you are letting Him change you from the inside out, you are not who you used to be.
Maybe you do not have a story like mine but have always felt like you don’t measure up or have nothing to offer anyone?
This is not how Jesus sees you.
You need to see yourself as the person you are becoming in Christ. This will help propel you into the destiny He has for you, and it will also propel you into deeper healing in your heart.
What does an accurate picture of myself look like now? For me, I no longer identify as the woman ready to be stoned. My life and past has been redeemed in so many ways. An accurate picture would be a woman who knows intimacy with Jesus, whose heart has been healed, who has had many layers of shame melt off of her, and a woman knows how much she is loved by her Creator.
Isn’t it amazing what Christ can do with a life surrendered to Him?
What is the mental picture you have of yourself? Does it match the one God has of you?
