Image Bearers

With pressure to fit an image in this world and the temptation to use what I have to "better myself" according to the world's standard...the Lord has been reminding me that my role is to bear the image of my Lord.

This world tells us all the time how important "image" is.  We have to dress a certain way, talk a certain talk, and carry ourselves in a certain fashion to fit a certain mold.  The world loves to try to define us.  It tries to convince us that if we live up to these requirements, we can fit in and "be somebody"... or at least be perceived that we are somebody in this world.  So we aspire to be perfect, or at least a perfect reflection of what we desire our "image" to be.  Whether we've perfected that Pinterest dessert or we came up with the most artistic Instragram photo... or we've managed to get our look down with the classy chic dress and 4 inch heels.  Maybe it's our work ethic that we've managed to define our image, our ability to conquer any difficult task given to us, or our willingness to remain loyal, no matter the cost.  Maybe it's our quirkiness or our rebellion to the norm that defines our image... our west coast hipsters certainly have an image of their own.

No matter whether we know it or not, we present an image to this world that everybody sees.  These days we find it pretty easy to control our image by what we post on social media... and we learn how to present ourselves differently depending on the crowd we're around.
Oh, we would love so much for the world to never see our failures,
                                          ...however, the problem with that is, we can quickly become fake and distant.

But for we who have believed in the Lord, we are called to bear the image of Christ.  How is this possible?  Isn't Christ actually perfect?  How do we attain this?

In Genesis 1:26-27, it speaks of how God made man in His own image.
Romans 8:29 - how God predestined us to be conformed to the image of His Son.
1 Corinthians 15:49 - how we shall bear the image of Jesus.
Colossians 3:10 - how we're putting on the new self which is being renewed in knowledge, after the image of its creator.

The world is the world and it will never change.  It will always try to make us feel like we need to be a certain person with a certain image.  The real problem: these ideas of image and perfection have seeped into the church.  We can trick ourselves into calling it "being a good testimony".  So many of us in the church are good at pretending that we're perfect, or at least good at preventing everyone from seeing our sin.  We're so good at presenting this "Christian Image"... we can dress nice, act nice, be active in service... but when it comes to our difficulties and challenges behind the scenes, we don't want anyone to know.  Since Christ was perfect and everyone else seems to be doing so well, we find it impossible to know how to be real among the brethren and the result becomes that we end up bearing a man-made image instead of the Lord himself.
I know for myself, even among the body of Christ, I've found it hard to be real with others about my own struggles at times because I felt I wouldn't live up to the "good girl" image I had going for me.  And sometimes I've thought that others wouldn't get me if I was honest about how I felt, because I've come from a different background and experience.

The issue becomes that we are attempting to bear the image of Christ with our own strength and understanding.  In doing this we become a less than genuine image of who we think the Lord wants us to be.  Then we find that we can't enter into fellowship, we have a hard time connecting in body-life, we're constantly worn out by service and we feel as though we don't fit in in the House of God.  It's an impossible feat; there's no way that we can represent Christ without Christ.  What image are we really bearing?

With the expectations of the world on our backs all the time, telling us we need to shape up and be better, I think it's easy for us to forget that we are but sinners in need of a savior.  Of course, we should never celebrate our sin, nor should we bring tons of attention to it.  However, if we can be honest about our sin and our weakness before God and in His House... we can testify as John Newton once said.. "I am a great sinner, but Christ is a great Savior".  And as soon as we can become real before God and before our brothers and sisters, we find that we don't have to work hard to bear the image of the Lord... and we need not try to bear an image of perfection.  But as we surrender to the Lord in honesty about who we really are, we find that He will work His life out in us, that as we follow Him, we will naturally begin to bear His image.
I found that as I became more honest before the Lord about my hurt and my difficulty and my sin and as I let Him satisfy the longings in my heart, I felt like I could connect more with brothers and sisters.  I was no longer as bound by my judgments of others and their judgments of me, and I found more opportunities to fellowship with those I had originally thought were so different from me.

"But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His son cleanses us from all sin" -1 John 1:7

As image bearers, may we be careful to not let our flesh define the image we bear.  Let us not pursuit perfection, but let us pursuit Christ.  Let us be honest about our weaknesses, but let us glory in the One whose power is made perfect in them.

We are nothing and have nothing outside of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Let's not try to make the world or even the Church believe otherwise.  This doesn't necessarily mean that we change how we dress or the way we talk with people, but instead of living up to an "image" of who we think we need to be or even who we want to be, may we live unto the Lord alone and submit to His leading in all things.  We will find that one whom we serve will become the image we bear.  For myself, it means letting go of my ideas of the image I want to portray, letting going of the temptation to be somebody the world loves, but also letting go of this man-made idea that in God's house I need to present a "perfect image".  Of course we don't want to spill all our guts to everyone and tell of all our sins and woes... but reality in the church starts with honesty in our hearts.

Indeed, all that we have and all that we are belongs to Him ...and in some great mystery, we can say "He is mine".  Hallelujah!  This is our story and it is glorious.
May we let our lives be simplified a little by being honest, receiving His grace, living by faith, and being obedient in the smallest of details.  As the verses mentioned above, we also need to remember that conforming to the image of Christ doesn't happen overnight... it is a process.  Remember, the Lord loves us, and He loves us far beyond our deepest pain and our worst sin.  And in His mercy, He is walking with us step by step, as we learn to deny ourselves and truly belong to Him.  His love will continue each step of the way until we are made complete in Him and reflect His glorious image.    

"But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.  ... always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies." - 2 Corinthians 4:7,10 

Home.

(This is an entry I drafted about a month or 2 ago...)

My heart strings are pulled by so many places on the map... literally.  The miles racked on my frequent flier miles can prove that, especially in this last year.  While I can easily say that it's because my family is all over the place, I have been asking myself: Have I been travelling so much because I'm searching for home?

Lots of thoughts lately about what my future might hold.  What should I be doing?  At this point in life... many of my peers start thinking about settling down, finding a place called "home".  Where is my place?  What is my purpose in where I'm at?  Am I bearing fruit?  Am I wasting time?  What is it that God wants out of my life?

...the short and simple I always get back from the Lord is... "You, I want you, Jessica".  

I live in a pretty simple apartment that definitely has its flaws, working at a job with a schedule that is far less than perfect and has its own slew of challenges; family is across the country and so many unanswered questions about my life and the Lord's plan hanging in the balance.

...but what I have been finding more and more in these last few months, when I come into the Presence of the Lord...I am home, I am resting, I know He is Lord and Sovereign.

The human heart is hungry and searching and we think we can fulfill our deepest desires with the world, with human love, or even in "going to church" and being filled with emotional or even spiritual encouragement and "community".
In essence, every human is looking for home.  We're looking for a place where we belong.

I've had a really hard time with this in these last few years, feeling like I don't really know where I belong.  Wherever I go, I can fit in in some ways, but I always still feel somewhat of an outsider.  I keep thinking something is wrong?  Is it a problem with me? Maybe I'm in the wrong location? Should I go back to my hometown? Maybe I'm at the wrong job?  I started once again looking at self to find the answer, analyzing my life to see if it was really in line with God's plan.  And I found nothing to grasp onto, no answers, just more anxiety and more questions... trying to decipher some plan of action, but with no peace.

Thank the Lord that through some difficult circumstances and hard questions that were asked of me, I started to see that my focus was all wrong.  I realized once again, that I had to leave all worldly desires and selfish ambition behind.  I had to let go of "all I once held dear".  I had to choose to say "God I am yours, and am willing to go wherever and do what you ask of me".
I started praying for the Lord to be my vision, and praying that the Lord would show me His heart for the Church.  I started praying for His burden to be exposed in my heart and for Him to teach me the way I should go.

And it's funny that within the next week...I no longer felt lost, no longer felt like I had to run away to find a "home".  I no longer felt that I needed all the answers, because the Lord was teaching me once again to be satisfied in Him, in where He has me, in this little apartment and at this job, serving in His body.  I started to feel a sense of belonging and a desire to be truly invested in His work in His church.  Not because I made more close friends or because I had more things that made me happy... but because I found my dwelling place was in the Lord, my expectation was in Him alone and because of that I found peace and rest and joy.  Amazingly enough, it seemed as though I started to see a bit through His eyes, I started having this urge to initiate more fellowship and care for His children.  Finding a place of belonging was no longer based on the place I lived or the people I hung out with.  All that I needed came from the Lord and He is teaching me that I truly belong to Him.  I've been bought with a very great price.  And it's amazing how much more grateful one becomes in the Presence of the Lord...and how I could see once again just how very blessed I am.

I started expecting less of my situation, less of the people around me and came to the realization that there's not much I can even expect from myself.  ONLY when ALL my expectation lies in the Lord can I find rest, and then the Lord can use this weak vessel.  It is only when I let go of my own expectations and place them in Him that I also find true purpose in life, because I see less of what I want and am more open to what He wants and open to His vision.  Hallelujah, His grace continues to teach us in all things and sustains us on the way.  

“Upon God alone, O my soul, rest peacefully; for my expectation is from him” -Psalm 62:5 (Darby)