By: Pastor Jarren Rogers

Mark Twain is quoted as saying, “Be yourself is about the worst advice you can give to people”. Jarren Rogers is quoted as saying, “Be yourself is about the worst advice you can give to Christians!”

We live in a culture that instills in us the importance individuality. It’s all about me, what happens to me, and how it matters to me. 

Our world is filled with people who rarely see past their egos. TV, social media, and movies tell us that we need never change. (Or if we do change we need to look more like the girl on the magazine cover or the happy man in the beer commercial.)Bruno Mars sings to us, “You’re amazing just the way you are”.

So why change? Just be yourself.

Thankfully, God whispers to us an alternative. Where the world says, “Never change” God says, “Allow me to change you.”

You see, the world has it all wrong. If we believe the adage of “be yourself” it can keep us from being who we were created to be. It’s not about being yourself, it’s about being more like Christ! 

When we enter the world, the person that God has created us to be has been tainted with sin and selfishness. Our desires are skewed. Our outlook is altered. Our heart is pulled in other directions. But God never wants to leave us there. 

Instead, by the power of the Holy Spirit, He makes us look more and more like we were intended to be. Our hearts can be pointed back in the right direction. We are freed from our selfish desires and the sin that weighs us down.

We won’t ever reach our full potential until we are glorified at Jesus’s return. But that doesn’t mean we should be content with just being ourselves. Rather, God wants to change you and mold you into His image.

We have to be a people who can see past our own pride and selfishness, a people who can admit to their sin. We must seek God’s throne daily and there find the grace that is available. By getting into the presence of God and humbling ourselves before Him, we can be filled with the sanctifying power of His Spirit.

With the infilling of His Spirit comes change. With that changing comes freedom from the burdens that weigh you down. In His presence we find love like we’ve never experienced and grace that can’t be measured. 

Why would you ever want to just be yourself?

God has grace and love and forgiveness abounding just within reach. All we have to do is seek to be changed.