He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
Feelings, all the things that go on inside of us. We don’t often think about it but many times we put on masks because we don’t want others to see how we are really feeling. We feel like no one could possibly understand what we are going through. No one else has these thoughts, these feelings. Insecurity, doubt, anxiety, emptiness, loneliness, and so many others. Many times, we try to hide how we are feeling, what we are thinking. Everyone else seems so much more adjusted than we feel. We must be the only one who ever feels this way. No one will understand.
What we often don’t realize is that the other people we encounter every day have the same feelings. We have all had similar, if not the exact, feelings at one time or another in our lives. We might be talking to someone face to face and not even realize that we are both feeling strong emotions that affect our self-worth, our self-esteem. We put on masks. We pretend.
Sometimes our feelings seep out and others do see them, or at least a hint of them. When I am nervous because I must present information to a group, I turn red in the face. It’s a nervous reaction I can’t control. We all have those times when reactions happen, and others do see we are going through something. Down deep, we are all the same. Same feelings, same struggles, same insecurities. But no matter how low we feel, there is One who loves us no matter what.
We need to realize we are not alone. We were never meant to go through this life alone or deal with all these emotions alone. Instead of judging our worth by the world, we need to look to the One who knows our worth, knows our struggles, knows our faults, and loves us anyway. God’s love and mercy is far greater than any other.
No matter how low we are feeling, God is ready to lift us up. God knows what we are going through. God knows us better than we know ourselves, and He loves us so much he sent Jesus to die for us, to save us. God feels we are worthy. We should turn to Him when we feel low, He loves us. With Him, there is no need for a mask.