True Self. New Self. False Self. Old Self. Surface Self. Real Self. Religious Self. What’s with all these “Selves”?
The Religious Self uses religious practices and spiritual talk to cover up what we believe to be a very unlovable and unlikable person.
The Real Self is honest and vulnerable, but rarely makes appearances because of past pain caused by reactions to the honesty and vulnerability.
The Surface Self comes out at social engagements where it’s easier to protect yourself and splash around in the shallow end.
The Old Self “is being corrupted by its deceitful desires” and is to be “put off” (Ephesians 4:22).
The False Self is driven by the need to hide or to be accepted and “is fabricated by social compulsions” (Henri Nouwen).
The True Self is the “new self which is being renewed…in the image if its Creator” (Colossians 3:10). It emerges, most always painstakingly, out of the old cast of pretense into the light of truthfulness.
The New Self is what the world sees when “Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4:19).
Jesus, most of the time I’m terribly confused about my own self.
In the spirit of Tozer, “I want to want Thee.” My soul yearns for You, but it also yearns for other things—revenge, a nicer car, a trouble-free life, and validation from others. I say that You are “more than enough” for me, but when I have the option to choose You above all others, why do I sometimes not choose You?
Lord, You’re good at knocking the props out from under me and asking me to stand with only You holding me up. Only You. You. You have the audacity to ask me to live what I talk about. You peel away my False Self layer by layer and leave my heart exposed and naked to the harsh elements of reality and to the warm glow of the Radiant Son.
Potter, I am the clay. Pound me. Shepherd, I am a little helpless lamb. Lead me. Master, I am Your servant. Command me. Father, I am Your child. Hold me. Friend, I am honored to be Your friend. Stick with me close. Lover, I am Your Beloved Bride. Woo me. May there be no other but You. God, I am my Truest Self when I am the surrendered clay, the helpless lamb, the loyal servant, the obedient and vulnerable child, the faithful friend, and the radiant Beloved.
Amen.
Today’s guest blogger Jamie Overholser is the founder of The Jacob Institute where he seeks to live out his true self in his vocation as a teacher, retreat leader, preacher, writer and director of a spiritual formation program. He is an Affiliate Partner with CenterQuest.
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“Lord, lead me deeper into your bosom of self-giving love. Only there can I find my truest self and become even more who I already am; if only to find deepest union with you, Holy One.”
Hey Jamie,
I remember so distinctively, the first time I ever heard we had several “selves”. It was deeply confusing to me when so many authors used different terms for the self and you did an awesome job of bringing them all up in one spot. So, yeah, no wonder it can be so confusing. “The True Self is being renewed in the image of the Creator”. Jamie, that is IT! I love that you posted this scripture. Do you know what RENEW means? It means “to resume after an interruption”. So true! We are who we are before time and it is the truest and most beautiful self- Nothing can erase it! We can only wake up to truth! In the words of Gerard Manley Hopkins,
“I am all at once what Christ is, | since he was what I am, and
This Jack, joke, poor potsherd, | patch, matchwood, immortal diamond,
Is immortal diamond”.
Lord, I continue to ask that You are formed in me. As you do your thing, help me to recognize that it is in fact You. Help me not to fight You in the process, but embrace Your every move with. Amen..
I’ve often told my students and retreatants and church members that this process of being renewed in the image of our Creator should not be evaluated on a daily or even weekly basis. If I were to look back over the last week and ask myself if Christ is more formed in me today than He was last week, I could very possibly get discouraged! We all have “bad” weeks. However, if I look back over a longer period of time, say a year or 5 years, and ask the same question, I may be astounded at what God has accomplished. This is a journey, and like a child on her way to grandma’s house in another state, it always takes longer than you think.
Ha Jamie, I love your analogies. I once heard a really wise sage and mentor say that any fruit cannot be trusted unless it lasts for at least a year. The rest of the fruit (or lack thereof) can be just tossed aside in a non-judgmental way.