Within pop culture, many writers, celebrities, and influential people reinvent themselves. Most people know of Taylor Swift and her many eras. This phenomenon isn’t something that only happens to Taylor Swift because most people reinvent themselves over time.
Sometimes, it’s intentional, and other times it’s unintentional. With this in mind, many of us are faced with the question of whether or not it’s a sin to reinvent ourselves. Is it something that should be discouraged or encouraged within the community of believers?
Reinventing yourself.
For some, reinventing yourself can come as a challenge. However, for most people, reinventing themselves is a result of the personal choices they make or their environment. Becoming someone different or a new you isn’t necessarily bad. In fact, sometimes changing and becoming a new person is a good thing and can cause many good things to happen in your life. Reinventing yourself isn’t a sin. When we put faith in Jesus, we become a new person and are given a chance at a new life. This is a new life where we choose to follow Jesus.
In this way, we’ve all been reinvented because we have placed faith in Jesus. It’s only natural that after we put faith in Jesus, we want to follow Him, live for Him, and apply His teachings to our lives. If we’re honest with ourselves, the reinvented version of ourselves after knowing Christ is much better than who we were before we knew Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Before we accept Jesus, we’re held in bondage to our sins, and we live our lives for our sinful flesh. However, after we put faith in Jesus, we no longer live for our wants and needs. Instead, we live for God and His purpose in our lives: to spread the message of Christ.
Therefore, reinventing ourselves isn’t a sin. It’s actually encouraged. Now, many people reinvent themselves in negative ways, like when teenagers try to be “cool” and get involved in the wrong crowd. Some reinvent themselves with the purpose of attracting a partner and abandoning their genuine selves. It’s essential to mention that you should never have to change who you are to get others to like you. Whether trying to find a life partner or make new friends, you shouldn’t ever feel like you have to change for someone to be with you or be your friend. The world tries to tell us that if we look or act a certain way, all people will like us, but this isn’t true.
True friends will like us for us, and a life partner will like us for us. A person who is a genuine friend or truly loves you wouldn’t force you to change yourself for them to like you better. That’s not a real friend or someone who genuinely likes you. Instead, be yourself and reinvent yourself in a way that reflects Christ to the world. Don’t reinvent yourself to attract the wrong people or because someone forced you into it. Instead, focus on changing and growing to be more like Christ. It can be challenging and trying, but God’s purposes are constantly being worked out in your life. He is molding and shaping you to become more and more like Jesus. In fact, from the moment you place faith in Jesus, you’ve already been in the process of reinvention.
Every step you take and every decision you make are becoming more like what God wants you to do. If you feel like you’re not making progress on growing as a believer, start investing more time in studying the Bible, reading the Bible and spending personal time with God in prayer. Through doing these things, you’ll be able to continue to grow and be reinvented to reflect Jesus. There’s nothing wrong with reinventing yourself with the purpose of better reflecting Christ. Reflecting Him to the lost world is a goal of all of ours as we are Christ’s ambassadors to the world. We should always strive to help others know Him, and a fundamental way to do this is by showing His love in our words, actions, and behavior.
Is there a timeframe for reinventing yourself?
There’s never a timeframe for reinvention. Typically, we expect everything to happen within a matter of seconds, but reinvention and change don’t happen that fast. It’s not going to happen as fast as you want. Reinvention takes energy, dedication, and time. It’s not a race but rather a journey. If you feel like you’re not reinventing yourself “fast enough,” know there’s no such thing as fast enough. Change and growth take time because they don’t happen overnight. Take your time and let God do His work in your life.
You might not feel like you’re making progress, but know that each time you choose to do what God wants you to do instead of what the flesh wants, you’re making progress. Don’t beat yourself up if you don’t see immediate results. Instead, show yourself grace and recognize that reinvention takes time. It’s incredible to evolve into the person God created you to be, but it’s a sprint, not a marathon. Every morning, ask yourself what you can do to serve Jesus with your day. Maybe that can be seen by babysitting a friend’s children because she needs to go to a doctor’s appointment or buying groceries for the elderly. It can even be something as simple as letting someone go ahead of you in line at the store or paying for someone else’s coffee.
All of these minor things matter to people and can show a glimpse of God’s love for people. To show Christ in our actions can be challenging, but He is worth it. Jesus died for us to live life to the fullest, and part of living a full life is loving others. There’s no point in life if love doesn’t exist. Jesus is love, and He wants us to show His love in everything we do. We can’t say we know God or are growing in Him if we continue to hate others. Within love, there’s no room for hate.
We must abandon our sinful ways and choose to follow Jesus. Reinventing ourselves can happen no other way. It’ll be a journey, but the end is found in Jesus. One day, all of the hard work you put in will pay off.
