I was praying the other day when the Holy Spirit asked me to write his heart to you on this topic and trust me, I’m as curious as you to see where His answer takes us. Fun right? Well, let’s see.
More often than not, we’re encouraged to ‘be ourselves’. Abi? We’re admonished on how we’ve got that differentiating factor, that special thing that only us have but what happens when you don’t know who you are so in essence, you don’t know who to be? The million-dollar question we’re trying to answer here is: How is it possible to be authentic when you’re unaware of the very nature of what, or in this case, who exactly you’re trying to stay true to? How can you stay true to what you don’t know? How can you be true when you don’t even know what the truth is, much less you live by it?
Let's look at it this way. You sing and there are a million others who sing too so what’s now the difference? You sing tenor and I bet you, a million more sing tenor. So, while it’s not exactly wrong that you have a differentiating factor, it’s much more than that. Because YOU are the differentiating factor. Your singing isn’t what makes you special, YOU are what makes singing special. It’s special because it comes from you. Other people could sing but it wouldn’t be the same because it’s not you. Aretha Franklin and Celine Dion are both celebrated singers and it’s roughly the same rubrics of music they would have been taught, and yet they are both distinct. Why? Because they both bring something only they can bring – themselves. That’s why no matter how many people are already in a venture, there will always be space for you to enter and make your mark – because that’s where God wants you to be.
In a sense, the authenticity conflict is a major reason why imposter syndrome does a number on so many of us, ‘creative’ or not (creative is in quotation because I don’t believe that there is anybody born without the capacity to create. Hello, made in the express image of the creator God somebody?) Imposter syndrome comes because we believe in a lie – that we’re imposters, frauds; that we’re not worth the accolades because somehow, the creativity others so admire about us is a lie since we’re not conforming enough. But, when you understand that it’s not really about living up to the title but about continuing to express that thing which originally earned you the title, in the way only you know how to do – that’s where the real chizz is.
But I digress, so let’s get back to what we were first talking about – how to be authentic. It’s pretty simple. To be true to something, or in this case, yourself, you have to be familiar with it first. Familiarity in this sense is an intimate knowledge of who you are, an intimate knowledge that can only come from intimacy with God, your creator. The more you discover Him, the more you discover yourself; because it’s exactly like looking into a mirror.
Let’s cut right to it: Authenticity independent of God is a lie. You cannot accurately ‘do you’ if you do not get the definition of yourself from the One who designed you. That’s something the world is missing and it's also the reason why no matter how loud it clamors for authenticity, there’ll never be any real answers.
You won’t magically stop feeling like a fraud by trial-and-error. That’s not the way it works, honey. You have to start with gaining intimate knowledge of God through the tested-and-trusted ‘twinsies’: prayer and intentional study of God’s Word.
If you don’t choose God’s definition of authenticity, drawn from the identity He alone has given you, it’s only a matter of time before you accept a lie. That won’t do you any good, trust me. I’ve tested and am still testing this. And now I can confidently say that I no longer worry about whether I’m being ‘myself’, not when what that entails is conforming to standards that oppose God. It all seems a bit sub-par when I can just stick to God’s design for who He wants me to be. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s the version of me that truly matters, and it’s what I need to stay true to above all other definitions.
I won’t do me, I’ll do God instead because after all, Imago Dei is me. ;)
So, what say you?
Hi guys! We've resumed our articles for the year 💃🏾 Are you excited? I ammm
How'd you enjoy this week's piece? Did you pick up a few things? What stood out to you? Any contributions? Let's meet in the comments
If you're new here, welcome welcome 😁 You should totally subscribe to keep enjoying premium lifestyle-centric content 💚 You'd be investing heavily in your growth by doing so✨
I'll be off to school soon so please keep me in your prayers. Don't worry though, I've got a few special articles to tide us over for a while at least so it won't be completely quiet here. My people, you're all in for a treat😋
Alrighty, lemme comman be going. I've got to wash and deep condition my hair, possibly nap too so yup, byeee😅
Remember to write me if you need to talk o
All my Love,
Mofeoluwa 💚
Newspapers haven’t started calling you to write for them??
You can only stay true to yourself when you know who you are and that can only happen when you know your Creator.
Thank you for this amazing piece Mofe ❤️