Authentic Living

By Julianne Hudson

“Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.”  

Brene Brown

When you hear the word authenticity, what do you think of? Take a moment to think about it. I believe more often than not we underestimate the beauty of living authentically because we have grown accustomed to trying to be like ‘them’ as if being ourselves is not enough. But you are robbing the world of what it needs when you try to be someone you are not. 

There is only one set of fingerprints that match up with yours, designed wonderfully and with purpose. No one is like you when you’re walking in your true identity. So often we fall into the trap that we’d rather live in a different pair of shoes because it appears glamorous. But the glamour we see on social media doesn’t go far. We may be unaware that a photo/status/video only depicts the moment someone is trying to broadcast and not the whole story. If we compare our lives to these false realities, we will constantly be battling self-pity. We will continually assume we have it bad, and everyone else has it good. This is far from true. Everyone has a battle they are facing, a giant in the way, or a roadblock they are unsure how to navigate around.   

What if we lived this way? What if we decided to look into the mirrors of our lives and ask God to give us the strength to live authentically? No pretending and no drama.  Being authentic doesn’t mean we are perfect, it means we are content with how God designed us and we are choosing to live it out. 

The greatest example of authenticity was Jesus while here on earth. He walked in a manner that was not only trustworthy but also reliable and real. He loved unconditionally in a conditional world and displayed a radical kind of love. 

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Matthew 5:14 NIV

Step into all God designed you to be, wear your heart on your sleeve, and know that being real is worth it. Trust that your life is like a city on a hill, designed with the purpose to impact those around you.

You truly start living when you live like Christ. At the end of your life, no one will remember your social media posts, but they will remember how you lived. Did you choose to live for the world, or for people to “like” what you share online? Did you live in such a way that words are unnecessary for others to see God’s love in your life? Let’s choose to live authentically, trusting that others will see the face of Jesus because of it. 

Photo Credit: Gift Habeshaw