You are accepted as you are.

There is power in knowing who you are.

I mean really knowing who you are.

What makes your eyes light up? What makes you cry at night in the shower? What're your favorite tastes, smells, textures? Do you like the outdoors or indoors? Animals? Shopping, reading, or baking? Or none of the above? What makes you tick? Who are you?

There's an epidemic in our country (USA) where we are so focused on fitting the expectations of others that we surrender our identity, resulting in a slow erasure of what we know about ourselves.

We forget that we matter, that our opinions matter, that our voice matters exactly as we are, and as a result, we try to sound like whoever else is currently dernier cri.

And that's the rub: acceptance vs rejection.

I preached a sermon once on the harrowing destruction that rejection and shame can have on us.

In it, I talked about how scientists have actually proven that rejection causes us physical pain; in other words, a broken heart is not so different from a broken arm. Rejection leads to increased anxiety, depression, and general unhealthiness.

Rejection wears many masks.

It can be your ideas being shot down at work; not making the team; not getting the job or promotion; being ignored in a social situation; being talked over or dismissed; sitting alone again at lunch; being dumped; being snubbed at church; not being invited to the girls weekend retreat. Rejection roams freely amongst us, and we let it, because rejection is humanity's natural consequence of not fitting the mold that the tribe dictates as important.

Rejection erases authenticity, it silences who we are, and like cool water over a rock, it rushes over us and wears us down over time.

How do we fight it? How do we acknowledge that rejection will always exist, but come to a place where it no longer has authority in our lives?

We know who we are. Really, truly know who we are: and we don't apologize for it.

Can you imagine?

Can you just imagine what life would be like if you were you in all your messed up, courageous, insanely beautiful glory? Can you imagine what it would feel like?

I think knowing ourselves and accepting ourselves would feel kind of like the "immoral woman" washing Jesus's feet with her hair.

Think about it: you've come to the end of yourself. You admit that yes -- you are broken and flawed. You believe that you actually deserve rejection. You are tired. The work that goes into trying to appease others, the effort it takes to go against the grain and keep your head held high, the faking it til you make it mentality

The immoral woman is tired. She's broken, flawed, and yes, rejected over and over again.

She hears that this Jesus is eating at a local Pharisee's house for dinner, and she goes over, uninvited. Despite her reputation, knowing that people disapprove of who she is, she comes to Jesus anyway. She brings her alabaster jar of expensive perfume, kneels down before Jesus, and, without even introducing herself it seems, she begins to cry. She dips her hair into her fragrance and begins to wipe each strand over Jesus's cracked heels and dust covered toes.

Can you see her? Can you smell the sweetness of the nard and myrrh? Can you see her resting at the foot of Jesus -- knowing that He knows who she is, but not caring? Knowing that she is accepted by Him? Knowing that she, for whatever reason, may be rejected by everyone else, but here she's not only accepted, but has the opportunity to SERVE the King? That she is shunned by society but allowed to know Jesus in this intimate way?

The immoral woman, who Jesus admits has many sins, is forgiven and treasured because of her radical act of love. She is able to come to the end of herself, acknowledge to herself who she is, and she kisses the feet of Christ because holy cow!!! There is no judgment here! There is no pressure to conform, there is no hive-mind mentality that dictates she must check all the right boxes in order to be accepted.

This is the beginning of her journey to truly know herself: she is loved by Jesus just as she is made by Him, and this means that she can begin to love herself. Jesus gives her permission to love herself, despite everything she hates about who she is. There is an invitation here to make peace with the bad and the ugly, and start to focus on the good instead.

So. Who are you? Tell me the good, the bad, and the ugly and I'll show you a woman who is loved, adored, and treasured, a woman who is accepted by the only one who really matters.