Seeing Yourself as God Sees You

How do you see yourself?

How does God see you?

Are the answers to those two questions the same?

For many years after I became a Christian, I operated under a false sense of who I really was. I had no idea the change that occurred in me the moment I accepted Christ. I did not see myself as God saw me and had no idea His truth was different from my perception of it. It was like I had a grid system or a sieve of inferiority, insecurity, and inadequacy over my mind. When I processed information about my circumstances or myself, it had to first filter it through that negative grid system.

It wasn’t until my mid-thirties that I began to realize that how God saw me and how I saw myself were very different. Like a hungry child, I began to research and write down verses about who I really was in Christ – my new identity as a child of God.  Here’s a bit of what I learned and if you know Jesus as Lord and Savior, then this is also true about you:

I am the salt of the earth. Matthew 5:13

I am the light of the world. Matthews 5:14

I am valuable to God. Matthew 6:26

I am indwelled by Christ. His Spirit lives in me. John 14:20

I am Christ’s friend. John 15:15

I am chosen and appointed by Christ to go and bear fruit. John 15:16

I am a child of God and a co-heir with Christ. Romans 8:17

I am more than a conqueror through Christ. Romans 8:37

I am accepted by Christ.  Romans 15:7

I have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16

I am a temple of God. I Corinthians 3:16

I am washed, justified, and sanctified through Christ. 1 Corinthians 6:11

I also learned that it was Satan who held that negative self perception in place and told me lies. He knows exactly who we are in Christ, but if he can keep us from believing it, then he’s won. Let’s don’t let him.

I came to a crossroads in my spiritual journey. One that we all need to come to, maybe today. I could continue believing the lies or I could begin believing the truth. I decided to believe the truth.

It was difficult and uncomfortable at first. Like the lame woman who regains the movement of her legs, or a blind man who receives his sight, I had to adjust to my new belief system.  A bit wobbly. Somewhat blurry.

Oh, my friend, God has so much planned for us to do and to be, but if we are operating with a false sense of who we really are, we may be paralyzed by feelings of inferiority, insecurity, and inadequacy.

On Jesus’ first day of public ministry, He walked down to the Jordan river and was baptized by His cousin, John. As Jesus came up out of the water, a voice spoke from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased” (Luke 3:22). That is the same thing God says to you…and to me.

“You are my child…whom I love…with you I am well pleased.”

You and I are exactly who God says we are. It’s simply up to us to believe it.

Dear LORD, I have believed the enemy far too long. I have seen myself as not good enough, not smart enough, not spiritual enough. But today, I am going to start replacing those lies with Your truth! I am a child of God – a new creation – empowered by the Holy Spirit who dwells in me! In Jesus powerful Name, Amen

 Go back and look at the list of your identity in Christ listed above. Which one of those means the most to you? I’d also love to hear why you chose that one! Just click on comment below and share.

Digging Deeper
Changing the way you think is a process. In my book, Enough: Silencing the Lies that Steal Your Confidence, you’ll learn how to:

• Silence the voice inside that whispers you’re not good enough
• Accept God’s grace and move past failures that have defined and confined you
• Preload your heart with truth to fight your deepest insecurities.

For a complete list of your true identity in Christ, check out my laminated card filled front and back with affirmations of how God sees you!