Not So Perfect Selfies - Guest Blog by Nate Wessley

I accidentally took this photo of myself last fall and was absolutely appalled at what I saw. It showed me that a candid shot, from the wrong angle, in bad lighting could reveal a pretty ugly side of myself.

Isn't that how life is though? We are constantly trying to make a good impression by putting our best foot forward, filtering out our blemishes and age, and minding our p's and q's so that the rest of the world can see a polished up version of who we really are. The sad part though is that it's typically only the ones closest to us that get to see some of the ugliness that is really there. They're the ones that we can lose our cool with over petty things. They're the ones that we can wound with words we wouldn't dare say to others. They're the ones that see our intentions and motivations when others don't. They're the ones that know the difference between what we allow others to see and what leaks out when the camera isn't rolling.

If I'm honest, this side of me came out plenty this past year. Although many fantastic things happened for me personally in 2020 there were many, many disappointments that stockpiled towards the latter part of the year. We were hit by a hurricane on vacation, came home from vacation to a blown engine in our car, the transmission went out of our truck over Thanksgiving, our heat source for the upstairs of our home went out, our computer fried (literally), and on Christmas day we came home to a horrific crash on our property...just to name a few.

Reality was, I was hit with some candid shots, from the wrong angle, in bad lighting and it started to reveal the ugly parts of me. Sometimes I think God allows those ugly parts to bubble to the surface to show us the work He still needs to do on our hearts. We are all a work in progress and just because we have made significant progress (with His help) in some areas, it doesn't mean that there isn't serious work to be done in others.

The good news is that He promises to continue to refine us into the image of Jesus (if we are believers) and that work won't be complete until we see Him face to face. The process doesn't happen overnight, but great things never do. So, be sure to give yourself some grace along the way.

Today, as we launch into a new year, I want to encourage you to take stock of the candid shots that have surfaced of yourself over 2020 (I'm guessing we all have some we aren't proud of) and lean into them. They're the places God wants to do some work in your heart.

Let Him do it. If you do, when next year rolls to a close, those candid shots just may be a bit more flattering.

(Philippians 1:6) “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”