False SelfSample

Hiding Behind Your False Self

Imagine that you could connect your mind to a machine that displayed all your deepest thoughts, hopes, and fears. No secrets. No masks. It is just you in your rawest, truest form.

This would likely start with a memory you have managed to keep hidden, like when you lost your temper at a loved one or lied to maintain your image.

And as we see in Genesis 3, attempting to hide our shortcomings from God never goes according to plan. Recognizing their nakedness and vulnerability, Adam and Eve covered themselves in fig leaves. They felt that they needed to protect themselves from the One who loved them the most.

God is love. That is good news with a dark shadow. The good news is you are loved right now without qualification or restriction. You are loved in a way that you cannot lose. The dark shadow in you also finds that love is hard to believe, and even harder to trust. The whole of your personal story is wedged between those two forces.

We often, and wrongly, act as though God’s love is dependent on our ability to be perfect. When intrusive thoughts like envy or lust enter our minds, we frantically attempt to cover them up with masks of individuality or pride.

As it says in Romans 3:23, all have sinned and fallen short of God’s perfect standards. This is why Jesus came—to redeem our hearts and renew our lives back to God’s flawless design, lavished in love and grace.

We cannot earn God’s love, and we were never meant to. What we can do, however, is offer our whole selves to God. When we do, we can find freedom and life in His love.

Reflection: What parts of yourself are you afraid to reveal to God? Do you know what it is like to live freely in His love?

Prayer: God, I know I am trying to hide myself from You. Please take all my flaws, sins, and failures. I trust that you will accept me. You will not abandon me. Amen.