Embracing You: Will The Real You Please Stand Up

The person beyond the image you see in the mirror , the person in the mirror who wants you to see you , the you beyond the figure , who maybe still has some things to figure out . You , the you and unique , yeah , you . Funny when I think of the expression in my head yeah , you . I'm thinking of Jake in the movie 16 Candles .

Now , I know I am totally dating myself here if you've never seen the movie or heard of the movie 16 Candles . Just a side note , you need to blow out some 16 Candles with some sisters at a movie night , so get this . My favorite scene in the whole movie well , let's be honest , there were many , but my favorite favorite scene was the whole movie .

Well , let's be honest , there were many , but my favorite favorite scene was the yeah you . It was at the end of the movie when Jake , the cute guy every girl wanted to date , was leaning against his car waiting for the girl he wanted to date , samantha Baker , played by Molly Ringwald .

If you've not seen the movie , I guess I'm going to spoil it for you right now . Sorry , but not sorry . Throughout the movie Samantha was crushing on Jake , who was a senior and she was a freshman . Long story short . Samantha , being a freshman , thought Jake never saw her , or at least how she wanted him to see her .

But at the end of the movie he not only saw her , he was waiting for her and she saw him seeing her , her eyes connected with his . And she says , while pointing to herself , me connected with his . And she says , while pointing to herself , me .

And from across the street , leaning against his car , maintaining eye contact with her , he says yeah , you , hey , you , is this microphone on ? I'm talking to the . Yeah , you Do . You know who you are and who you are not , because that's who you think you are . Will the real you please stand up . Welcome to another episode of it's a Single Mom Thing .

I think as humans we make the big mistake of describing who we are by our obsessions , possessions , successes or failures , associations , associate degrees , dollar figures and even our figure . We think we have us all figured out . Well , how can that be if all we are doing is describing things , but we are never really saying who we are .

But we are never really saying who we are . Think about it If we describe who we are through things or acquisitions , well , doesn't that change , like the direction of the wind changes , not knowing where it comes from ? So if a person , let's say , is living on food stamps , does that mean that they are less than ? As a Christian , I know who I come from .

If you have a different religious belief , I'm sure your religion most likely tells you you are something . As a Christian , however , my faith tells me directly that I am from the great . I am the I am that created the universe , the alpha and the omega , the beginning and the end . Who declares himself as the I am ? Well , the I am . He knows my name .

In fact , I am made in his image . So to know him , you will know me . When people want to get to know you , what do they normally ask you , which really shouldn't be normal ? They ask you things like what do you do ? Where do you work ? What college did you go to ? Where do you live ? Yada , yada , yada , yada .

Now this is me speaking , but I think when meeting new people , this exchange of communication , kind of short changes our value . We never talk up front saying who you are , declaring who you am or am not , or even it doesn't lead to questions of asking who you are .

It has become so routine that it has become a part of our DNA of communication and for me , actually being such a social person , I honestly I really struggle with the awkwardness of meeting someone new because of the short change of communication that , to me , just doesn't feel right .

It says nothing about me , nor creates an interest for the other person to seek the real me .

The real me never stands up , kind of like I don't know when we get on to just talking about the weather , just saying what if our introductions and meeting a new person was more about introducing them to the real you Instead of the things that describe our experiences or the possessions we may have or not have ?

Descriptions , in my opinion , are prescriptions of madness and misinformation . Think of it this way we know that in most cases , prescriptions are prescribed to remedy something right away , but they never really treat the cause of what's going on . So questions that only expect descriptions of things , in most cases , which are possessions and accomplishments and or failures .

They never really share the who you be . So in most cases you don't even know who you are . No wonder sometimes we grow up confused , not even knowing who the real you is . For me , it took me a long time to know the real me , as I thought I was those things , those were me . Power in the name .

Okay , how many of you like me could say growing up that you were conditioned by the good opinions of others and who they said you were ? In school it was based on a grade on your report card and or a accumulation of report cards . In sports it was based on whether you came in first or last place With friends .

It was whether you were a best friend or a friend with benefits . Appearance , it was based on your dress size or the size of your chest . Fast forward a few more years , it was based on the initials in front of your name , or even the ones after your name .

It was to the point where , if it was not apparent to you , in some cases your parents told you who you were and who you were going to be when you grew up , like who you are was in some far off place and not here . Wait , did they have like a crystal ball or something I know .

In most cases , most parents meant well and were only doing what their parents taught them . Do you see a pattern of that , maybe in your own life ? That has gotten passed on ?

For me , for example , my grandma , who was one of 12 children and grew up in the Depression era and their family , let's be honest , had very small financial means as they were immigrants From that experience , the meaning my grandma gave herself and spoke over herself and who she said she was , was poor .

To the day when my grandmother passed away at the age of 96 and had acquired a large amount of wealth from hoarding every penny she earned , she still thought she was poor . Now , I mean two generations later well , I thought I too was poor from what was passed on to me , even though my family's bank account didn't reflect that .

But I was poor in my mind , body , spirit and soul . That was me , or so how I thought it at the time . So let me ask you , your parent do you know what your kids are gonna be when they grow up ? No , sometimes I think you just wish they'd grow up because you're tired .

So why would you ever tell them , based on some future event or events that happened in your life . This is who you are , you see . What's really sad is that we are so conditioned by the good opinion of others sometimes that we even start saying the same things to ourself , just as I shared about being poor , which , listen y'all .

Poor is an acronym for meaning passing over opportunities repeatedly . For me , and for a long time , who I was , who I thought I was , was stupid based on my grades , poor study habits , or even because I was the smallest person in the classroom who was put in the back of the room , never able to see the chalkboard . Well , guess what ?

I was bored and not paying attention to the learning that was happening in front of me because I couldn't see the board . Therefore , my teachers and my mother were frustrated with my lack of progress , and the way they described my learning led me to believe that who I was was stupid .

Today , I know that couldn't be further from the truth , because I am many things , one of which is a creative genius . Does any of that experience resonate with you ? Who are you ? Did you know and I learned this from my friend , author slash speaker , ginger Fitchett , who spoke to our single mom thing class , by the way , a couple of weeks ago .

Did you know that the name you were born with means something , describe something about you ? Yep , it sure does . Look it up on good old Google . Now my name means darling , most beloved person . Now , that is not who I said I was growing up I didn't even know she existed . I'll share a secret with you .

That is exactly who God says I am when I speak to him in our quiet time . I about peed my pants when I looked my name up on the web and that was the meaning I found in my name . I kid you not , take it one step further , meaning I found in my name .

I kid you not , take it one step further as a Christian in God's word it also says that I am fearfully and wonderfully made . Psalms 139 , 14 through 16 . I am not a mistake , even though my mom hoped I would be a Scott and not a Sherry . I'm not stupid , alone , poor and not a sherry .

I'm not stupid , alone , poor , abandoned , lonely , out of shape , old , less than I am . Certainly not the nicknames others gave me that were based on my height , stature and outcomes , and I am not my possessions . I am whole and complete like nothing . I am most beloved am whole and complete like nothing . I am most beloved .

There is power in my name , hint , hint . So are you , even if you don't see it or know it right now . So , since you now know , hopefully you went on Google to look up your name . If not , what are you waiting for ? So , now that you know the meaning of your name that you were given , be sure to share with your kids the meaning of their name .

How awesome would it be if your kids were equipped with the power found in the meaning of their name now and not later Made in his image .

Many times , magazines and ads sell us and sell us short , let's say , because you're short or A plus size , have gray hair or even no hair , are a certain age , are in a certain season , or even what you can afford or could not afford to lose . Well , tell me this .

Okay , someone near and dear to me , whose niece , at the age of 14 , was diagnosed with cancer , lost all her hair during treatment . Was she her cancer ? Was she ugly because she had no hair ? Is that who she is ? Do you think she said I am any of those things ?

Or possibly did cancer reveal at a very young age she is none of those things , but has something she can share with other girls her age looking for their real you , this young lady . She learned she is loved , beautiful , bold , blessed , confident , healthy , strong , experienced emotions , but she was not her emotions equipped and healed .

What's great about this special gal is that she knew who the real her was before she was ever diagnosed with cancer . She was a daughter of the king made in his image . She was a daughter of the king made in his image . As such , she may have had an experience with cancer , but cancer was not her , nor how she described herself .

Her family knew it too , and they wrote it on the door and the windows of her hospital room , reminding her of who she is . She could see it Now . Even more fascinating was that the nurses , the doctors and the patients that passed by her room . They knew who she was too , even if they didn't understand her . God , genesis 1 .

27 says so God created man in his own image . In the image of God , he created him male and female . He created them . Now , I'm sure there were times her emotions felt like they were telling her something different , but at the core she knew with confidence that she was made in the image of God . In her journey .

She had an experience with cancer , but she was not cancer . No , she was who her name said . She was healthy and strong . Her name is Valerie . Now , come on , women , think about it . If the real you is blah , blah , blah , based on the way let's say the blah you feel every 28 days , that would mean the real you would change every month until menopause .

And listen , that is a whole , nother season of change . Child , please Praise God . Like the clouds , those emotions pass , revealing the sun that is still shining . You , my friend , are still shining , even if you can't see it right now . The real you is behind those clouds of descriptions that have covered up who you really are . Are you your single situation ?

Is the real you less than because you have not ? No , you me , we are not our emotions , we are not our circumstances , we are not our bank accounts , we are not the size of our jeans and we don't become someone when we meet a special someone . You are you For Christian believers .

You know you were created by God , who said yeah , you , this is who you are , this is who I designed you to be . Psalms 139 , 13 , 14 says for you formed my innermost parts , you knit me together in my mother's womb I will give thanks and praise to you , for I am fearfully and wonderfully made .

Wonderful are your works and my soul knows it very well , girl . If he wrote a whole book for you , so check it . Inside of it is filled with his words of who he says you are . He didn't leave it for the world to tell you who you are . So get curious about who you are .

He created you , just you , for a plan he wants to fulfill through , and only you .

Now here's the key , and this much I have learned you have to know who the real you is , to really step into those shoes and walk out that base story , letting the world see the real you , to be comfortable with the real you , no matter the size of your body that houses your spirit .

Something I have also learned is that there is a process of discovering who the real you is and not who the world tells you , who the real you should be . It's a process of kind of like repiecing yourself together , much like a puzzle . You see , jesus overcame this world and he did it for you .

You too can overcome this world and its worldly beliefs trying to shape you into its mold . He broke that mold For me . Hypothetically , I knew I was a star-shaped peg that never fit into a square peg hole , but the world said there was something wrong with that . But the world said there was something wrong with that . That's some kind of baloney .

Will the real you please stand up ? So do me this solid Take time this week , whether on the toilet or toiling around on your drive , to pick up your kids and speak out . Who the real you is based on God's word , so I'll have a link in the description notes that you can like we talked about last week .

Post on the back of your bathroom door or , even better , on your mirror . Now I took it one step further for me and I recorded them on my voice memos and I listened to them while I'm in my car , at the gym or even getting ready for work . Now I double dog . Dare you to do this for 30 days ?

I usually do this for me in the morning , because it's better than a caffeinated cup of coffee , in my opinion . Do this for 30 days and see if some things start to change . Do you feel different ? Do you see things differently ? Do you even want to do some things that the fake you never thought the real you could do .

If you do this , along with some of the suggestions in last week's podcast on dreams , I guarantee you the real you will stand up . And please save some years and tears and start teaching your kids now who the real them is . There are great books out there like who Am I ? Rooting a Child's Identity in Christ , even who Am I and why Do I Matter ?

And again , I will have these links in the description notes . Now , remember faith comes by hearing , and hearing from the Word of God , as found in Romans 10 , 17 . So be patient in this process . I promise , as they are His promises to you you will discover the real you .

If you look for her and really want to get to know her , shoot , there might even be a Jake who sees you too . Might even be a Jake who sees you too . So don't sit down . Have the real you . Stand up . Girl , why have you not joined us at it's a Single Mom Thing classes ? What are you waiting for ?

We are all there to discover and uncover the real you . Sure , we may have some baggage , but we are checking that at the door and not picking it back up either . If you live in the Tampa Bay area and want to join us . Visit us at shepherdsvillagecom forward slash classes for more inspiration and information .

Summer's here , or at least it feels like it , and have you lost your cool Girl . It's time to get your AC checked . Before it checks out in the heat of the summer , call our friend Jeff with West Shore Services , florida HVAC at 727-458-7474 and tell him your girl , sherry from Shepherd's Village , sent you .

Have a wonderful week and remember it's a single mom thing and not the single thing that stops you . Thanks for listening to . It's a Single Mom Thing . I hope you enjoyed our time together . If you have more questions on how to have a relationship with Jesus or need prayer , visit us at wwwshepherdsvillagecom . Backslash prayer .

For more information and resources , check out our show notes .