Have you ever wondered how you can become the best version of yourself? Most of us have, but we seem to fall short of our expectations over and over. So, maybe there is an alternative to what you have tried before.
First, let’s think about the primary way most have attempted to improve. If you are honest and self-aware, you have made a list of your positives and negatives. Next, you may have tried to make your positives stronger and get rid of your negatives. If you have had some success, that’s great. Yet the majority either give up or find themselves in a vicious cycle of trying harder, getting discouraged, giving up, feeling like a failure, then repeating.
Let’s take a look at an alternative that is genuinely encouraging. The opposite of the above cycle is to discover a kingdom perspective that God had in mind for your life. Here we go!
Accept Your God-Given Personality
Psalm 139:13 (a) tells us that our inner being, our personality, was given by God.
“For you created my inmost being.”
There are a number of tools available to help us understand this, such as the DISC personality test. In general, you will realize that there are people who are mostly introverts, extroverts, and inbetweenverts! The reality is that just as there are many flavors of ice cream, there are many flavors of personalities. Often, we wish we had a different one, but the reality is, you were born that way. Yes, it can be shaped and tweaked, but you will still have it. Why is that? Could it be that this world needs to see what it looks like when Jesus lives through your flavor of personality? Once you accept that, you will be more at peace with yourself.
Accept God’s Design of Your Body
Psalms 139:13 (b) tells us that God was involved in designing your body type.
“You knit me together in my mother’s womb.”
This can also be challenging. We need to accept that our body is perfectly imperfect as part of our loving Father’s design. If you can improve it, go for it. However, some things are unchangeable, and we need to accept them as from God. For example, I was born with connective tissue disorder. It’s why I had multiple sprained ankles playing sports. It’s also why I have difficulty building large muscles. I used to hate this, but I’ve learned to accept that my Father’s good intention was to give me this body so Christ could be expressed to people through its imperfection. He formed your body for the same reason.
Here’s where we land with both of these. We can reject ourselves and be mad at God, or we can stop fighting against His design and accept it as His plan. His plan is always good. It’s to show people what Christ looks like through your personality and your body.
If you stay stuck with the first one, you will live a bitter, discouraged life. If you choose to accept that you are exactly what God planned, you will enjoy becoming your best self now. Which one will you choose?
Mark Maulding, President and Founder
Bestselling Author
God’s Best-Kept Secret: Christianity Is Easier Than You Think
