Out of the Mouths of Babes
A few nights ago, I had a face painting gig at a local family restaurant.
From the moment I walked in with my case of supplies, until I finished the last little cheek, I was busy. Two solid hours of hearts, superheroes. butterflies and more painted on the faces of many kids and all seemed to love every minute of it.
One little girl, however really stuck out. She was about 3 years old, and had that adorable little heart shaped toddler face with curly dark pigtails creating the perfect frame.
When I asked her what she'd like, she said without any hesitation: "A KITTY!"
I asked her: "Do you want one on your cheek, or do you want to be a kitty?"
"BE A KITTY," she immediately said.
She sat perfectly still and waited patiently, while I gave her a full face paint of a cute cat. (Pink nose and long whiskers included ) If you've ever seen kids get their faces painted, few are still, and if so, they are usually much older than three.
After several minutes, I was done and told her: "You're all done!"
She immediately said: "MEOW!"
Notice, I said "immediately." She hadn't even seen a reflection of herself. It only took my saying it. Yes, her mother was right there, and showed her the great kitty face, in the phone, which the little girl loved, but by then she was already in full character. She had her "paws" up and was scratching behind her pigtail with her "paw." She was meowing and purring all the way to the play area.
The night went on, and this little girl would occasionally come back to me, and lean on me, sit on me and basically she was my "cat" the remainder of the time. When they got ready to leave, she stopped by again to tell me: "Some of my face washed off when I ate, but I'm still a kitty." :)
"Yes, yes you are," I said. She "meowed" goodbye and the night came to a close.
I have thought a lot about that little girl this week. She needed no proof, no reassurance and no confirmation of her "new identity." Not only did she immediately accept my word, she remained "in character" all night. There is a great truth in this.
An epiphany over face paint? yes.
Imagine how different our lives would be, if we just accepted our identities as they were given.
I don't mean given by backgrounds, by careers, by failures, by successes, or any other external issue. What if we accepted ourselves as whom we were created to be, before time even began?
"Before, I formed you in your mother's womb, I knew you." ( Jeremiah 1:5a )
What would happen, if we as a people truly started believing who God says we are, what He says about us, what we are destined to become?
For me, I doubted for what seems like an entire lifetime to believe in myself. I had listened for years to others.
If only you were a better:
wife, mother, singer, minister, artist, woman, teenager, career woman, anything, everything....
What would have happened if I had accepted:
"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well."
Ps 139:13-14
"You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you."
Song of Sol 4:7
"Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life."
Isaiah 43:4
"You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God."
Isaiah 62:3
Need More? https://www.openbible.info/topics/self-esteem
Indeed, I could go on and on. We have believed the lie of "less than," for millenniums, yet in one moment, if we just take that ridiculously easy example of childlike faith. and just embrace what He says about us, imagine the transformation. Our homes, our churches, our communities and every single place we go would be transformed. It's been said: "Nothing more beautiful than a confident woman." But there is NOTHING more glorious than a person who truly knows his/her worth. It took me too long to discover that, and I have no intention of ever returning to that girl I once was.
Now, I don't plan on wearing cat makeup to prove this. BUT, I have truly decided to believe the truth of what my amazing God says about me. I don't need anyone else to affirm that, or discredit that belief, ( Trust me, I have had plenty of the latter. ) It's really as simple as a decision. Just like my little friend did, when my God says "You're ready!" All I have to do is embrace it, jump off His lap and Be all He says. I don't even need a reflection in a mom's smart phone.
Is it really that easy, with all the voices that berate, that intimidate and that remind us of what we're not? Hmmm, I think so. Just like face paint, the quality of our beliefs will have to be reinforced, Those beliefs can "wash off" if we are not careful. We have to choose not only to believe what our Father says about us, but we also have to revisit those promises. There will always be obstacles, as you've probably noticed, this life? It is brutal at times, but if we truly believe, and I mean really believe in the whole message of the gospel, of redemption, of grace? Then, we can do this.
Crazy, unrelenting, unwavering faith...
Let's do this. Pink noses and whiskers not needed.
From the moment I walked in with my case of supplies, until I finished the last little cheek, I was busy. Two solid hours of hearts, superheroes. butterflies and more painted on the faces of many kids and all seemed to love every minute of it.One little girl, however really stuck out. She was about 3 years old, and had that adorable little heart shaped toddler face with curly dark pigtails creating the perfect frame.
When I asked her what she'd like, she said without any hesitation: "A KITTY!"
I asked her: "Do you want one on your cheek, or do you want to be a kitty?"
"BE A KITTY," she immediately said.
She sat perfectly still and waited patiently, while I gave her a full face paint of a cute cat. (Pink nose and long whiskers included ) If you've ever seen kids get their faces painted, few are still, and if so, they are usually much older than three.
After several minutes, I was done and told her: "You're all done!"
She immediately said: "MEOW!"
Notice, I said "immediately." She hadn't even seen a reflection of herself. It only took my saying it. Yes, her mother was right there, and showed her the great kitty face, in the phone, which the little girl loved, but by then she was already in full character. She had her "paws" up and was scratching behind her pigtail with her "paw." She was meowing and purring all the way to the play area.
The night went on, and this little girl would occasionally come back to me, and lean on me, sit on me and basically she was my "cat" the remainder of the time. When they got ready to leave, she stopped by again to tell me: "Some of my face washed off when I ate, but I'm still a kitty." :)
"Yes, yes you are," I said. She "meowed" goodbye and the night came to a close.
I have thought a lot about that little girl this week. She needed no proof, no reassurance and no confirmation of her "new identity." Not only did she immediately accept my word, she remained "in character" all night. There is a great truth in this.
An epiphany over face paint? yes.
Imagine how different our lives would be, if we just accepted our identities as they were given.
I don't mean given by backgrounds, by careers, by failures, by successes, or any other external issue. What if we accepted ourselves as whom we were created to be, before time even began?
"Before, I formed you in your mother's womb, I knew you." ( Jeremiah 1:5a )
What would happen, if we as a people truly started believing who God says we are, what He says about us, what we are destined to become?
For me, I doubted for what seems like an entire lifetime to believe in myself. I had listened for years to others.
If only you were a better:
wife, mother, singer, minister, artist, woman, teenager, career woman, anything, everything....
What would have happened if I had accepted:
"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well."
Ps 139:13-14
"You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you."
Song of Sol 4:7
"Because you are precious in my eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life."
Isaiah 43:4
"You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God."
Isaiah 62:3
Need More? https://www.openbible.info/topics/self-esteem
Indeed, I could go on and on. We have believed the lie of "less than," for millenniums, yet in one moment, if we just take that ridiculously easy example of childlike faith. and just embrace what He says about us, imagine the transformation. Our homes, our churches, our communities and every single place we go would be transformed. It's been said: "Nothing more beautiful than a confident woman." But there is NOTHING more glorious than a person who truly knows his/her worth. It took me too long to discover that, and I have no intention of ever returning to that girl I once was.
Now, I don't plan on wearing cat makeup to prove this. BUT, I have truly decided to believe the truth of what my amazing God says about me. I don't need anyone else to affirm that, or discredit that belief, ( Trust me, I have had plenty of the latter. ) It's really as simple as a decision. Just like my little friend did, when my God says "You're ready!" All I have to do is embrace it, jump off His lap and Be all He says. I don't even need a reflection in a mom's smart phone.
Is it really that easy, with all the voices that berate, that intimidate and that remind us of what we're not? Hmmm, I think so. Just like face paint, the quality of our beliefs will have to be reinforced, Those beliefs can "wash off" if we are not careful. We have to choose not only to believe what our Father says about us, but we also have to revisit those promises. There will always be obstacles, as you've probably noticed, this life? It is brutal at times, but if we truly believe, and I mean really believe in the whole message of the gospel, of redemption, of grace? Then, we can do this.
Crazy, unrelenting, unwavering faith...
Let's do this. Pink noses and whiskers not needed.
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