Who are you and who do you let define that? In a world demanding perfection in a box, we sometimes lose sense of the real meaning of life and who we are as individuals. We give in to pressures of the media and our peers, living in the shadow of someone else not knowing any different. Here at Rainbow, we want to show campers that there is something different- that they can step out of the shadow into a much greater reality.
Colossians 3:17 states, “These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however is found in Christ.” God knew the world would want to define us, form our self-concept. For if it can have hold on who we believe we are, it knows we can’t do anything to change others. Through a reality check and change, we can change our self concept to what our Creator intended.
First, we must have realistic perceptions of ourselves. We can be overly high and give ourselves more credit than deserved, or low and be too self critical to think positively about ourselves. Pride is the attitude that one is better than the other. 1 Peter 5:5b states, “All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’” Apparently, God doesn’t like it when we have too high of a self concept. We are then living under a shadow that pushes others below us. Instead, he calls us to be humble for that is when we are in check with His reality.
We may feel like we aren’t worth a dime with a low self concept. Poor treatment from others not recognizing strengths can lead to this. Our campers come from many different backgrounds. If they give in to parents that don’t show them love, hurtful teasing siblings, magazines pushing an unattainable ideal look, they will live under the worlds shadow and have a low self concept. At camp, we want to be the support team that challenges them to a reality check. We challenge them to not only recognize their weaknesses, but also their hidden strengths that they may have never realized.
Secondly, we must have realistic expectations. Once we find a realistic perception of ourselves, we can’t expect to be able to tackle the world all at once. Change comes with time and gradual steps. When we see others, we can’t rank ourselves compared to them. They are living their own journey and if we rank and compare, we are setting ourselves up for disappointment or pride. Instead, we can look at where we were in the past and see how much we have grown.
Third, we must be willing to change. Jesus talked about how words are meaningless without action backing them up. If we want to change our self concept, we must not only say it, but take the steps to put it into practice. In Luke 18, a rich ruler asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus listed off a few different things and the rich ruler replied how he had followed those since he was a kid. Then, Jesus told him to sell everything he had and give the profits to the poor. The guy became very sad and it never really tells the end of the story. Maybe Jesus wanted to show the man that he had strengths. When he told him to sell everything, he brought the guy to reality. Even though he wanted to change, he was living under the shadow that said material possessions define who you are. The Bible never says if he followed through with it or not. How often do we say we want to change yet aren’t willing to do the work to get there? We must strive and depend on God to change our self concept.
Lastly, we must have the skills to change. Granted we don’t always know how to change. When we have lived under the shadow of the world our whole life, we don’t have the skills on our own to get out. At camp, we have knowledgeable cabin parents and guest speakers that campers can talk to and get advice. We want them to observe positive role models and see how they live their life. We believe in discipleship and pairing someone with a more mature Christian that can help them through the ropes, help them to the reality of who they are through God.
At the end of the day, changing our self concept is a process and not a quick fix. The awkward stage may be around for awhile but with time, change will be integrated into our daily lives. Having realistic perceptions and expectations, the will and skills to change, will lead to a life where we don’t have to live under a shadow. It is not the world that defines who we are, but the reality which is found in Christ.
