Photoshop Devotional - a Five-Day Devotional Inspired by "Photoshop" From Leanna CrawfordSample

Day 2 - Presets

“Presets” are a collection of edits that are recorded as a batch and can be applied to an image (or multiple images) with just one click. 

Growing up in church I learned how to just “look” the part whenever I needed to. It wasn’t conscious; I wasn’t trying to be fake or trick anyone. I just realized there are certain words to say when you pray, or talk to your Sunday School teacher. Not to brag, but I’m really good at putting on the “I have it all together mask.” The issue is that when you spend so much time pretending you are growing in your faith, you miss the point of truly following Jesus. When you’re able to throw a "preset" on that says “I have faith,” is it really faith if it’s not being lived out? We rarely recognize when we start putting on a faith preset, but over time, if we’re not careful, we will let the preset become a constant companion in our relationship with Jesus instead of a real relationship.  

It’s kind of like when you first learn to drive a car. At first, everything is new and exciting, and every time you sit in the driver’s seat, you are extra careful to remember to check if all your mirrors are adjusted correctly before you get on the road. You are intensely focused on staying between the lines, and you get nervous when you hit 60 mph merging onto the freeway. However, after a few months or years of driving, you hardly notice the mirrors (hopefully they are still correctly adjusted), and merging becomes effortless. You still perform the tasks of driving, but instead of hyperawareness of every little thing before you start your car, it becomes second nature. The danger of letting driving become second nature is that anything can happen on the road. What if a car cuts you off or suddenly brakes and you’re following too closely? If you’ve been driving for any amount of time, you know that anything can happen, and you always have to be aware. 

Just like driving, it is inevitable that at some point in our lives, most likely multiple times, we will face all kinds of struggles. But if we keep just putting on the faith "preset," it’s more likely that we will get in a "heart" wreck. See what I did there? (car wreck—heart wreck . . . I digress). Anyways, as followers of Jesus we don’t have to face these trials alone. But if we never tell anyone that we are struggling with our faith, then how is anyone supposed to know we need help? Jesus put those people in your life so you could grow in your faith together. You don’t need to keep putting on a "preset" that you’re the best Christian ever. We are all messy and need someone to come into our lives and do some clean up. 

Being open about our issues is so hard. It’s scary. We wonder what people will think of us if we tell them everything. Here’s the deal—I would highly encourage you to share with one, maybe two, of your most trusted friends. Ask them to pray and walk with you through it. Try taking off the "I have it all together preset," and see what God does in your heart and in the hearts of those around you. 

Talk It Over: 

1. Get real with Jesus; go to a trusted friend, and be open with an area you might be putting presets on. 
2. Ask Him for help to be the most authentic version of who He created you to be.