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For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren. Romans 8:29

The self-portrait phenomenon has taken the world by storm, giving birth to the 2013 Oxford dictionary word: selfie.

Nowadays, everyone takes selfies, including the British royal family. Someone’s house was burning to the ground, and the gut reaction of one guy was to pull out his mobile phone, put on his cheesiest grin, and take a selfie. Why do we love taking photos of ourselves? Psychologists claim that selfies are driven by the desire to promote our idealised-self in order to win acceptance and approval.

We are so worried about our external appearance and it’s interesting how we solve that problem. Multiple selfies are snapped until we get that perfect one, which we believe, earns our self-worth on Instagram/Facebook. Smartphones have made it easier than ever to control and create our self image.

How we see ourselves doesn’t stem from who we really are, rather, it’s how we think others perceive us on social media. How do you see yourself? What thoughts have you had about yourself today? Have you considered a different perspective—seeing yourself as God sees you? "People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

What is really important for followers of Christ is how we live our lives in the eyes of God. God created us in His own image (Genesis 1:27) and called us to conform to the likeness of His Son Jesus Christ. This is the perfect selfie we can work on crafting. And the good-news is that we can approach God just as we are, without having to win his acceptance and approval by putting on our best pose.

Let us align our perfect selfie by:

• Thanking God for creating you in His image and longing for you to be conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus.
• Asking God to help you see yourself the way He sees you and be totally affected by it.