How God Sees Me Vs. How I View Myself

There have been moments in my life when I tend to get caught up in comparing myself to others and their success. In times like these, I end up focusing on my perceived flaws and weaknesses and not on the strengths that God has given me. As a reminder to myself and anyone else who struggles with their perception of themselves, I’ve compiled a few promises from Scripture that show God’s purpose and plan for my life.

HOW I SEE MYSELF: WEAK AND CONSTANTLY FALLING BACK INTO OLD SINS AND HABITS.

HOW GOD SEES ME: “FOR I CAN DO EVERYTHING THROUGH CHRIST, WHO GIVES ME STRENGTH.” PHILIPPIANS 4:13 (NLT)

I have sins and habits that have been present in my life for years that I sometimes choose to simply ignore or attempt to rationalize in order to excuse myself from the guilt I may feel about them. I believe in a God of grace, but I don’t want to exploit His good grace and never-ending mercy so I can continue doing things that are detrimental to my growth as a believer. As I enter this new year, I plan to strengthen my relationship with God so that when I deal with temptations, I can rely on Him to help me fight them.

HOW I SEE MYSELF: A FAILURE AT SCHOOL AND WORK.

HOW GOD SEES ME: “THE STEADFAST LOVE OF THE LORD NEVER CEASES; HIS MERCIES NEVER COME TO AN END; THEY ARE NEW EVERY MORNING; GREAT IS YOUR FAITHFULNESS.” LAMENTATIONS 3:22-23 (ESV)

Laziness and procrastination never used to be a problem for me, but entering college and adulthood has left me with increased pressures and stress, which I choose to deal with by avoiding my problems and work until the last minute. I know that this is not God’s desire for me, and that He made me smart and fully capable of all the challenges before me at work and at school. Even when I might focus on past failures and see myself as less intelligent than others, God loves me despite my shortcomings and is constantly breaking me and molding me into a better version of myself.  

“GOD LOVES ME DESPITE MY SHORTCOMINGS AND IS CONSTANTLY BREAKING ME AND MOLDING ME INTO A BETTER VERSION OF MYSELF.”

HOW I SEE MYSELF: PHYSICALLY IMPERFECT AND NOT AS BEAUTIFUL AS OTHER PEOPLE GOD HAS CREATED.

HOW GOD SEES ME: “AND YET, O LORD, YOU ARE OUR FATHER. WE ARE THE CLAY, AND YOU ARE THE POTTER. WE ALL ARE FORMED BY YOUR HAND.” ISAIAH 64:8 (NLT)

As an artist and premedical student, I admire beauty and the human body, and when I see how lovely some people seem to naturally be I wonder why I am (in my opinion) so seemingly uninteresting and not as tall or elegant. To see flaws in our own beauty is a universal human struggle, and so when I look in the mirror and am starting to feel bad about my looks, knowing that God made me to look a certain way for His purpose and plans reminds me that I was not made haphazardly or without thought, but that my Creator Himself took time to form me and did so with great love.  

“I WAS NOT MADE HAPHAZARDLY OR WITHOUT THOUGHT. MY CREATOR HIMSELF TOOK TIME TO FORM ME AND DID SO WITH GREAT LOVE.”

HOW I SEE MYSELF: UNDESERVING AND UNWORTHY OF LOVE FROM OTHERS.

HOW GOD SEES ME: “SINCE YOU ARE PRECIOUS AND HONORED IN MY SIGHT, AND BECAUSE I LOVE YOU, I WILL GIVE PEOPLE IN EXCHANGE FOR YOU, NATIONS IN EXCHANGE FOR YOUR LIFE.” ISAIAH 43:4 (NIV)

This is a big one for me: for some reason, I find it really easy and fulfilling to love others and let them know that God loves them through my actions yet struggle with accepting acts of kindness from strangers and friends alike. Recently, I had a friend and fellow believer tell me something that has stuck with me since we spoke. She told me to “accept community,” especially from other Christians, because it allows us to give and receive God’s love. I truly believe God spoke through her to me that night, and ever since I have been working on seeing myself as worthy of love from others.

HOW I SEE MYSELF: NOT STRONG ENOUGH TO PURSUE MY DREAMS AND AMBITIONS.

HOW GOD SEES ME: “IN CONCLUSION, BE STRONG IN THE LORD [DRAW YOUR STRENGTH FROM HIM AND BE EMPOWERED THROUGH YOUR UNION WITH HIM] AND IN THE POWER OF HIS [BOUNDLESS] MIGHT.” EPHESIANS 6:10 (AMP)

I have a lot of passions and goals for my life, and I believe that I am following God’s path for me. But sometimes I think of all the things that He wants me to do and wonder if I am the right person for the job. But Moses was called by God and felt unworthy. David was the least thought of son in his whole family. Joseph was hated by his brothers and was a slave and prisoner. Yet each of these men rose to do great things because they trusted God and His Word. So while on my own I might not be strong or brave enough to do certain tasks, with God working in me and through me I am perfectly able to do all those things and much more than I can even imagine.

“MOSES WAS CALLED BY GOD AND FELT UNWORTHY. DAVID WAS THE LEAST THOUGHT OF SON IN HIS WHOLE FAMILY. JOSEPH WAS HATED BY HIS BROTHERS AND WAS A SLAVE AND PRISONER. YET EACH OF THESE MEN ROSE TO DO GREAT THINGS BECAUSE THEY TRUSTED GOD AND HIS WORD.”

I hope that my own experience with my shortcomings and insecurities serves as a comfort to fellow believers who also deal with the same issues, and together as we grow in our faith I pray that we all learn to love ourselves as God loves us, and go on to do wonderful things for this world in His name.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. – John 3:16 (NKJV)