The Real Me
Genuine. Real. Authentic.
It's what we want in friends, in guys, in pretty much anyone we spend time with.
It's what we want for ourselves. We want to be real. Genuine. Authentic.
Let me rephrase that: It's what we SAY we want.
But I bet you've spent days where you got to the end and think, "I did not like me today." You were real. Genuine. Authentic.
And horrible.
We can call it honesty or hormones or a bad day. But every single morning we choose to have a certain attitude. We choose how we're going to treat others. We choose what to say.
And when we choose to be our genuine, real, authentic self, we are often not the people we want to be.
Right? Amen? I'm not talking about other people. I'm talking about YOU.
Is the real you the person you want to be in 5 years?
This thought struck me last week. I had the ultimate pleasure and honor of spending 11 days--in very close quarters--on a road trip with 5 people I cherish. They chose to love, chose to have good attitudes, chose to hold their tongues when they could have lashed out. There were no hurt feelings, no biting words, no secrets, no talking behind backs.
And because of that, I was a much better person. I was fun. I was helpful. I was gracious and polite and (mostly) sweet. I LOVED THE REAL ME WHEN I WAS AROUND THOSE PEOPLE. I was genuine. Real. Authentic. And I loved the real me.
But that's not always the case. The real me is rarely awesome.
Y'all have heard me lament the trials of being a wife and mother. I act nothing like my childhood hero Claire Huxtable and lack most of her wit and charm. Sometimes, being a wife and mom brings out the worst in me.
The real me. The genuine me. The authentic me. She can be pretty terrible. She's easily irritated, quick to judge, and slow to listen.
How can the real me be both gracious and grating? Sweet and sinister? Loving and lacking?
I would like to blame it all on my circumstances. I mean, if I could just surround myself with amazing friends, I wouldn't struggle to be the person I like. The real me would be the me I like. It wouldn't be fake or hypocritical or forced. If I could just cut people out of my life who bring out the worst in me, the worst in me would go away. Right?
WRONG.
The worst in me is still in me. The real me has the potential to be either amazing or terrifying.
So am I a hypocrite? Is the real me the one I love or the one I wish I could change?
And the most important question: can the real me change?
I want to suggest today that the "real" you is not who you want to be. The real you is sinful, selfish, and self-seeking. The real you is corrupt from birth and deep down cares nothing about your friends, family, or strangers.
So you've got to change the real you.
Ephesians 4 is a great place to start. Verses 17-32 are entitled "Instructions for Christian Living" in the NIV. It's more than just a list of dos and don'ts. It's the concept of choosing to become new when you accept Christ. It says things like
Summary: CHANGE YOURSELF.
Stop being the original real you. Make the authentic you different. Become a new genuine you.
When Paul wrote this letter to the church in Ephesus, he didn't divide it by verses and chapters; it was all one big letter. So when we get to the end of Chapter 4 (above) we shouldn't stop. And the perfect instruction on the real you is found in the first two verses of Ephesians 5:1-2:
"Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children. And walk in love..."
(HCSB).
Imitate God. Look at Him and let the real you change.
YOU CAN be more like Christ.
YOU CAN change the real you.
YOU CAN be the person you really like without being a hypocrite.
BY LETTING CHRIST TAKE OVER.
It has nothing to do with your circumstances, your personality, or your background.
You are called to reflect Christ. To change into Him. The Holy Spirit is changing us all into the same image: Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18). For His glory.
Your real you can look a lot like Jesus.
If you want it to.
So let's start doing things that Jesus did:
Let's choose to love.
Let's choose to forgive.
Let's choose to speak truth in love.
Let's choose to focus our minds and hearts on God.
Let's choose to put the needs of others before our own.
Let's become a new real.
Let's glorify Christ with the authentic person we can be.
I LOVE YOU!
Leslie
myleslienotebook@gmail.com
@leslienotebook
It's what we want in friends, in guys, in pretty much anyone we spend time with.
It's what we want for ourselves. We want to be real. Genuine. Authentic.
Let me rephrase that: It's what we SAY we want.
But I bet you've spent days where you got to the end and think, "I did not like me today." You were real. Genuine. Authentic.
And horrible.
We can call it honesty or hormones or a bad day. But every single morning we choose to have a certain attitude. We choose how we're going to treat others. We choose what to say.
And when we choose to be our genuine, real, authentic self, we are often not the people we want to be.
Right? Amen? I'm not talking about other people. I'm talking about YOU.
Is the real you the person you want to be in 5 years?
This thought struck me last week. I had the ultimate pleasure and honor of spending 11 days--in very close quarters--on a road trip with 5 people I cherish. They chose to love, chose to have good attitudes, chose to hold their tongues when they could have lashed out. There were no hurt feelings, no biting words, no secrets, no talking behind backs.
And because of that, I was a much better person. I was fun. I was helpful. I was gracious and polite and (mostly) sweet. I LOVED THE REAL ME WHEN I WAS AROUND THOSE PEOPLE. I was genuine. Real. Authentic. And I loved the real me.
But that's not always the case. The real me is rarely awesome.
Y'all have heard me lament the trials of being a wife and mother. I act nothing like my childhood hero Claire Huxtable and lack most of her wit and charm. Sometimes, being a wife and mom brings out the worst in me.
The real me. The genuine me. The authentic me. She can be pretty terrible. She's easily irritated, quick to judge, and slow to listen.
How can the real me be both gracious and grating? Sweet and sinister? Loving and lacking?
I would like to blame it all on my circumstances. I mean, if I could just surround myself with amazing friends, I wouldn't struggle to be the person I like. The real me would be the me I like. It wouldn't be fake or hypocritical or forced. If I could just cut people out of my life who bring out the worst in me, the worst in me would go away. Right?
WRONG.
The worst in me is still in me. The real me has the potential to be either amazing or terrifying.
So am I a hypocrite? Is the real me the one I love or the one I wish I could change?
And the most important question: can the real me change?
I want to suggest today that the "real" you is not who you want to be. The real you is sinful, selfish, and self-seeking. The real you is corrupt from birth and deep down cares nothing about your friends, family, or strangers.
So you've got to change the real you.
Ephesians 4 is a great place to start. Verses 17-32 are entitled "Instructions for Christian Living" in the NIV. It's more than just a list of dos and don'ts. It's the concept of choosing to become new when you accept Christ. It says things like
- don't live as unbelievers (verse 17)
- put off your old self (verse 22)
- be made new in the attitude of your mind (verse 23)
- put on your new self, created to be like God in righteousness and holiness (verse 24)
- put off falsehood and speak truthfully (verse 25)
- get past your anger (verse 26)
- don't steal; work (verse 28)
- build up others with your mouth (verse 29)
- get rid of bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, and slander (verse 31)
- be kind, compassionate, and forgiving (verse 32)
Summary: CHANGE YOURSELF.
Stop being the original real you. Make the authentic you different. Become a new genuine you.
When Paul wrote this letter to the church in Ephesus, he didn't divide it by verses and chapters; it was all one big letter. So when we get to the end of Chapter 4 (above) we shouldn't stop. And the perfect instruction on the real you is found in the first two verses of Ephesians 5:1-2:
"Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children. And walk in love..."
(HCSB).
Imitate God. Look at Him and let the real you change.
YOU CAN be more like Christ.
YOU CAN change the real you.
YOU CAN be the person you really like without being a hypocrite.
BY LETTING CHRIST TAKE OVER.
It has nothing to do with your circumstances, your personality, or your background.
You are called to reflect Christ. To change into Him. The Holy Spirit is changing us all into the same image: Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18). For His glory.
Your real you can look a lot like Jesus.
If you want it to.
So let's start doing things that Jesus did:
Let's choose to love.
Let's choose to forgive.
Let's choose to speak truth in love.
Let's choose to focus our minds and hearts on God.
Let's choose to put the needs of others before our own.
Let's become a new real.
Let's glorify Christ with the authentic person we can be.
I LOVE YOU!
Leslie
myleslienotebook@gmail.com
@leslienotebook
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