We live in an age of the twisted self-image; it is prevalent and pervasive. It is actually the number one pandemic that is not actively being treated yet requires the most attention because it is responsible for so many premature deaths, many hate crimes, suicides, and abortions.
The twisted self-image is an image that has taken the most important bits of a person and distorted them, the most crucial aspects of the individual required for their purpose are contorted, it is an attempt to fit in to the present society and culture, this image denies authenticity and uniqueness. Though it may seem like a natural likeness, it is actually comical. This image is a very much a caricature.
I enjoy art in its many forms – paintings, drama, music etc and every one of these forms of art have evolved in so many ways. Paintings are one of my favourites. A painting reveals so much in a split second and what it reveals could be different depending on who is looking at it, their perspective even their mood could affect what they see. You don’t have to be an artist to slap colour on a piece of paper and call it art but you will need to be a seasoned artist and creator to get a portrait right. The human portrait is a classic art form and kind of painting and this have evolved overtime.
I was fortunate to see many forms of art and portraits while I visited the museum the louvre in Paris. On my visit a few years ago, I got to see the Monalisa.
The Monalisa painting is worth billions but no sale value is likely ever to be agreed it seems because the French government consider this painting belongs to the people and therefore has infinite value. This painting illustrates to me our own worth or our self-image in the eyes of God, an image that would lose value if it were to be distorted.
I guess the question following from that is how do we know when we are distorting our self-image, how do we know when we are not being real, authentic, who we are meant to be or along the path of becoming
I personally think you will have a lot of discomfort. Consider a round peg trying to fit into a square hole. Don’t translate this to mean that you will have no difficulty or challenges being true to yourself because you will but those discomfort will still fill you with peace. The discomfort we feel in distorting our self-image leaves an unnatural heaviness, an ache for more because of the hollowness of the life you might be creating. A hollowness because you don’t know how to fill up a vessel that is contradicting its purpose or imitating the purpose of another. A wise woman once said God will only help you be the best version of yourself not someone else. Your source is unable to fill up a vessel that is contradicting its original mandate, a vessel that has been twisted up cannot be filled to its original capacity.
So if we manifest caricatures floating through the world that makes for a lot of comical relief but very little substance, very little generational blessing, very little healing if at all.
The word of God says, “Even in laughter the heart may ache and rejoicing may end in grief.” So after the laughter from your comic relief is done what then? Have you succeeded in fundamentally changing a heart eternally or only providing temporary relief from what ails them? The world needs our authenticity. The world needs what we were originally designed to carry. The world needs all the different colours, voices, passions, creativity that we have to bring and to bring it with gumption and relief us from a grievous end.
Statistics report that over 6,000 people in the UK committed suicide in 2020 and in the US approximately 46,000 committed suicides and another 1.2m attempted to. We also know a lot of these are preventable and that is why we have organisations working to create awareness and help people out of this predicament These are preventable conditions that the doctors and nurses are having to deal with, our health service is overstretched resource wise and financially. The world is at breaking point.
On the other hand, we have a pandemic that has not been named and yet has completely taken over our world.
By turning a blind eye on this distortion of our self-image, we are enabling a suicide of our original mission, we become an accomplice to the abortion of our God given vision. These are statistics we will never know because many may never realise, they have been living a lie.
The best think you can do is consider your own heartfelt desires and bring them under the light that never fades away, the light that is constant and chases every shadow. The light that lights your path to glory
Be honest with yourself, be brave, be determined, don’t give up on you, you are more than enough!
Identify with people who are chasing their authenticity, find people who are not afraid to not conform to the norm, find people who love God, find people who will be honest with you and not just play the cheerleader for cheering sake. Get wisdom and understanding and apply it to your life.
If you are already on this journey of assuming the right self-image, don’t run ignoring the many causalities along the way remember it’s a pandemic. In a pandemic, you need to follow the guideline for protecting yourself even when helping others. So, wear the amour of God, it is your protection – wear the helmet of salvation reminding yourself you have been saved by faith, the breastplate of righteousness knowing Christ has made things right for you, the shield of faith that embolden by fending off the deceit of this world, the boots of the gospel of peace and the belt of truth that holds your cloak together. Don’t dare wonder out without it.
As I write this I think of the many nurses and doctors that put their lives on the line during the corvid pandemic. They fought valiantly to save many lives. We are in a spiritually war, fighting to save many lives too but we need to be fully kitted to have any chance of survival just like the doctors and nurses. Wear your armour even as you administer your words of encouragement, as you administer healing, as you praise. Never be without it. Only then can you stay filled as you properly fill others up!
There are people you have been called to and the only way to reach them is first being well in yourself. By first having a clear understanding of your mission, your self-image, your worth. The caricatures of this world will not stand a chance in this war for lives, they will not provide effective administration of the required medication, they will not trigger the generational blessings that need to be triggered because the effects of their design is only fleeting, momentary and consequently ineffective.
This is a call to the brave, it is a call to those ready to rewrite the dominant narrative, it is a call to those who refuse to be boxed in, those who understand their image has its unique flair that ignites others. This is a call to become the flawless self-image you were created to be!
Be blessed!
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