I recently worked at a community health clinic in Malawi with a team of volunteers, mostly from the USA. (Sorry for repeating myself to those of you who are regular readers.) Whenever I serve with a team of people like those I was with last week, it’s not uncommon for someone to ask me how Jamie and I came to serve in Africa. It’s always fun to tell our story because until today, I can’t imagine how God chose to use me. Me, warts and all. This is who God chose, and that makes me smile.
Warts and all, it’s just a saying
Please don’t misunderstand me when I say “warts and all.” It’s just a saying that encapsulates how amazing it is to me when God chooses people. Each of us has his/her idiosyncrasies and curiosities that make us wonderfully unique. I used to buck against myself, being angry with myself for my uniqueness. Everyone else seemed so normal in comparison to me.
And that is where the problem lies. Comparison.
The thief of joy
Comparison is the thief of joy. It steals your personality’s fingerprint from you. If everyone wears blue and to fit in you also wear blue (even though it’s your least favorite color) your personality won’t shine through. If all we do is try to fit in, we risk losing ourselves.
I find it strange that people fall so easily into comparison’s trap. One would think that in 2024, with all of the brou-ha-ha made over being yourself, we would no longer struggle with the thief of comparison. However, the pressure to conform remains.
Don’t conform, be transformed
I have discovered that at least part of the reason that I battle with the complicated feelings resulting from comparison is that by comparing myself to others, I am defying what God has instructed me to do. As a Christian, God has commanded me not to conform but to be transformed.
It’s harder to transform than it is to conform. Why would God call us to transform rather than to conform? Doesn’t He want us to be happy, to have friends, and to fit in with everyone?
The short answer
The short answer to those questions is no. God knows that conforming to the world means denying who we are to be accepted for what we are not. It’s disingenuous to conform. Be who God has made you to be. It takes some work to transform into the person you’re destined to be. As it takes training for an Olympic athlete to compete, it takes training to be transformed.
How do we transform? By getting close to God and developing a relationship with Him. There are unlimited free resources out there to help you grow. Check the list below:
- YouVersion
- Bible Gateway
- Bible Hub
- Olive Tree (one of my favorites)
- And of course reading A Cultural Shift can help also.
Warts and all rather than be an imposter
None of us are immune to the effects of comparison. Even those among us who are “old warts” (I’m not saying I’m an old wart but I might be) can inadvertently stumble into comparing ourselves to others. I struggle from time to time and wonder why can’t I speak as nicely as so-and-so or have the skills needed to make more of a difference in the lives of others. I’d love to be a doctor or nurse practitioner so I could actually treat the sick – but medicine is not where my passion lies. Were I to pursue something out of my gifting, I’d be nothing more than an imposter.
And we all know there’s nothing worse than someone pretending to be someone they are not.
So I’m serving God, warts and all. I’m being who God has called me to be. My call isn’t fancy, nor is it framed in neon. I’m a missionary who plants churches with her husband and touches people as she can with God’s love. It’s pretty simple but, I’ve learned that for me, it’s also pretty cool.
