Picture perfect

I have a love/hate relationship with pictures. They capture moments and hold memories for us.....but do they always tell the truth? When we see family pictures with everyone smiling in front of a picturesque background we don't see the struggles that family may be going through. 

Take a look at some of the snapshots of my life. In each one, you see a happy, motivated, loved teenage girl. They show a senior in high school, a gymnastics coach, and a church-attending Christian who can defend her faith and give all the right answers to questions of theology. They tell a story of a twin who's close to her family and always smiling, who grew up homeschooled and can't wait to attend a Christian college.

If you look at the pictures, my life is perfect.

The reality is a little messier though. You don't actually know me, everyone only knows little parts of me. They all get snapshots. But the full mess? I don't even think I fully realize it, and I sincerely doubt I could communicate it. Besides, who would want to see it all? So even my closest friends only get snapshots. 

What you see in snapshots really isn't someone's real life, we all paint a picture that looks perfect while we hide our pain from the world. I want you to realize today that your snapshots don't have to be perfect, that you are seen and understood, and lastly I want to urge you to get the full picture of someone's life.

Here's one of my biggest problems with only showing snapshots: We think they all have to be perfect. When people only see you as being put together and composed, you become afraid of revealing anything different. So we fight to maintain that image. Once we think people see us as having all the answers then we believe we have to live up to that standard, afraid that anything else would be disappointing them. There is this fear that they won't like us or will leave us once we show them our more human side; our brokenness. Friends, I have seen so many people hurt by this lie. If you find yourself buying into this myth right now, please stop. You are human, don't be afraid to show people that. Friends bond over brokenness, not perfection. Let people in to the real story of your life, and every so often, let them see a picture that isn't perfect. Then they will love you for you, and they will feel more free to be real with you. 

People around us often only see the pictures we want to show them, that's why they only get these snapshots of our life. But God sees the whole photo album and understand every thought that goes on behind the scenes. He knows your thoughts, struggles, fears, mistakes, sins, hopes, dreams.....all of it. 

One of my favorite songs right now is by the band For King and Country and its called, "God Only Knows", here's some of my favorite lines,

"God only knows what you've been through
God only knows what they say about you
God only knows the real you
There's a kind of love that God only knows"

The song talks about how we keep a cover over every secret, so afraid that people would leave if we showed them, but there is Someone who sees and never leaves. This song sums up what I want to say much more eloquently then I could. God sees more then just the snapshots, more then the smiles you fake when you are struggling. He sees you for who you are, He sees everything you go through. You are not alone. You are not misunderstood, at least by God. And there is so much comfort in that. 

Feeling misunderstood and forgotten leads very quickly to depression. I know. I've been there. I have friends who are there right now. I implore you to not just believe the snapshots you see of peoples life. And I'm not just talking about Instagram or Facebook photos, I'm talking about the little glimpses of them you see. Because you may think you know people, but often times you simply haven't noticed how much more there is to them and their life. 

Go learn something new about someone. Figure out their struggles. Right now. And yes, I am speaking to you, not just someone else.

I love stories, I love hearing about people's struggles. I want to get to know people for who they are. And I am so hypocritical about this, because like I said, no one really knows me. But I collect stories, whether written or spoken, they are all a testament to the power and love of God. They show how He mends broken humans. Pictures capture moments, stories capture lifetimes. Every story makes me love God and love people more. Go look for the story beneath the picture they've showed you.

Don't make your life picture perfect and force yourself to maintain that. God knows what you're going through and your friends want to. They want to see you for you. Tell your story and go listen to stories. There will always be a theme of God's grace and redeeming love.