"So God created man in his own image. (Gen. 1:27) The question may be asked, "What is the image of God?" Nothing seems to answer this question better than the character and attributes of God, with the chief among them being love.(1 John 4:8). How do people perceive God? Obviously, there is no single perception, however, most people who believe God has a personable nature acscribe to Him supreme good, love and righteousness. This awareness seems to support how God perceives Himself as revealed in the Scriptures and in  nature.
 

Sellf-image may be defined as the mental picture, that is not easily changed and for many people remain the same for a lifetime, that depicts a person, his characteristics that include inteligent, beautiful, ugly, talents, selfish and kind. Self-image results  from how the individual sees himself, how others see the individal and how the indivdual perceives that others see him. Self--image affects how we feel about ourselves and how we interact with others and our environment and the world.

How do you see yourself? What picture do you have in your mind of yourself" How do you feel about yourself? Answers to these questions reveal what is true for the individual about his self-image. A person's behavior may or may not correspond to his self-image. In other words, he may see himself as afraid but acts with confidence or being sefl-conscious but acts with courage. Pretending, posturing and posing may be defensive ways of confonting his world. However, being inauthentic, phony and masking can only be done at a price that includes the inability to behave responsibldhy, to relate meaningfully to others and denying himself life-enhancing opportunities.

An individual's self-image can be developed beyond its present state, especially for people who have low self-esteem and see themselves as inferior. This begins with a person being honest with himself, i.e, accepting the picture he has of himself as being true and having a desire to change and become authentic. To cease pretending invites other people to respond in helpful and healthy ways that enable a person to trust himself and others. Developing one's self-image requires that he take responsibility for the feelings he has about himself and to make a  commitment to appreciate himself and others.

Personally, I developed my self-image by accepting what I believe to be true ,  that "I am a child of God."  Whenever I had the picture of myself as being inferior, even if I perceived that others believed this to be true , I affirmed, sometimes verbally, "I am a child of God." In this regard, I have also benefted from being mindful of these words, of the Psalmist, ".. I am fearfefully and wonderfully made"  (Psa. 139:14).
I am somebody
I know that I am somebody
I love being the sombody that I am
I am a child of God.

Copyright 2016 by Uriah J. Fields.