I love soliciting opinions — do you like this dress?  Which picture do you like the best?  What about this article I wrote?

Of course, I like opinions when they match up to what I want to hear.

I want you to love my dress.  Like my picture and tell me how my article made you laugh or cry (depending on what I was writing).

This need for you to like me can be a HUGE stumbling block in my life.  Okay, confession time – it HAS been a huge stumbling block.

I spent a quite a few years trying to fit in.   It was like an olympic event for me (and yes, I'm on olympic overload and that's why I'm using this analogy) — and I was determined to win!  I wanted to be JUST LIKE everyone else.  I wanted to FIT in.  I didn't want to be different.     I would wear the ‘right' clothes.  Say the ‘right' things.  Have the ‘right' past.

I could buy the clothes.

I could change my talk.

But I had to lie about my past.

And I did.

I made it look better than it was.  In reality, my past is a mess of wrong choices and some very bad mistakes, but it's also filled with incredible blessings and God's amazing provision and protection.

When I lied about my past I missed my chance to share about God's great redemption and all those blessings!  Sure, I hid my mistakes, but I also hid the story of God's provision and protection.  In my desire to fit in I missed the chance to STAND OUT for God.

Every one of us has a story — and if you're a follower of Jesus then you have a redemption story.  And this story glorifies God's saving grace, His amazing love, and His incredible forgiveness!

I let my desire to fit in — my identity crisis – impact God's plan for my life.   God has redeemed all those wasted years and it's to His glory that I now walk with Him.  That's my story.

I don't fit in.

But that's okay.

I stand out for God.

What about you?

Are you fitting in or standing out?