I notice when I get on social media, I always seem to see a trend in smiley, happy pictures of people. We all create our own social media image to describe who we want others to see. There is a hidden person in every aspect of images and posts. Social media cannot describe who we are and dictate it to others. It can help others see who you want to be or are similar too, but it can't describe who we are.

We are all different and unique people and nothing can describe who we are. Being present with someone truly shows who we are. Through social media it seems like someone has a perfect life, but then the image disappears. They seem to put on a great social media image and face, but people don't see the rough parts of life as much. We seem to post positive thoughts only and don't show as much of the raw side because we are so focused on comparison. People don't see us when the day has not grabbed us by our boot straps and we are struggling to make it. I always seem to see that we want to post the best thoughts or picture or even article to have the best image. How do we step out of this trap of comparison and be us?

Its really up to you, but you can address the situation straight on and cherish every human interaction, not focusing on what people think of you on any account you have, but worrying what the Lord, our God, thinks of you. One of my favorite Bible verses is Romans 12:2. It goes like this: "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." We are not to shape to what other do to please ourselves or our self image, but to renew our minds to show God's will. Sure, it might be nice to get 100 likes on an Instagram post and get a little boost from that. However, God doesn't look at how many likes we get, but he looks how we worship him and proclaim his name to others through our actions. I have had the pleasure to experience this a little this summer in meeting new people and exploring the city more. Getting to see people accept this thought and not worry about the Facebook, Instagram post or Tweet they will put out later is so eye-opening.

We are faced with different obstacles in our generation on how social media intercepts our lives. I am so amazed at how it can affect emotions, thoughts and quick decisions. Thinking about how God would want our image to be helps me personally know that what I post may be fun, but ultimately it doesn't matter what others think of it. I challenge you to think about this in the coming week when summer tempts us in these ways!