DAILY DEVOTION: May 1

I’m just now celebrating the good things about me; the ways God created me to see and perceive, to think and to know, to act and to react. The odd ways my personality quirks and my bends. My family calls me Silver—finding linings that light up around dark clouds is my superpower. I can see in technicolor the upside to a hard situation; the blessings God bestows in the battle.

But in order to fully be who you are, we have to be aware of our darker sides, too; the ways we naturally default into sin, the ways we deviate from the path without a second thought. How I can spend more time imagining how scenarios might play out than fixing my eyes on Jesus. How I can be quicker to judge and slower to empathize. How I can slide into complaining before sliding into praise. These are my natural patterns, they come easier than breathing. I can immediately point out how I see God moving in your situation, while selfishly refusing to sacrifice for my neighbor while doing it.

We talk often about being who you are, recognizing our natural and God-given gifts and talents. Embracing and thanking God for them; stepping into them and walking them out in the fullness of God. But when we accept who we are, we sometimes forget to acknowledge that who we are is also flawed and fragile, sick and sinful. That we also need to be actively turning away from the sinful parts and seek to be more like Jesus—letting go of the fruits of selfishness, jealousy and rage as we grow the fruits of the love, joy, and peace.

As we spend this month focusing on being who we are, we have to start with an accurate picture of who we are. We can’t move forward in loving ourselves if we can’t even see the places in us that are desperate for the redemptive work of Christ. Our good qualities are a gift from God, but His forgiveness of our sinful human nature make those gifts shine even brighter. 

“If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—simply come clean about them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself.” (1 John 1:8-9, The Message)

—Monica