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On many a Sunday morning, I find myself getting ready for church. I gaze at\nmy closet, filled with casual clothes for school, but nothing seems right\nforchurch. I quickly grab a simple blouse and hurry downstairs. At church,\neveryone seems well-dressed, happy, and eager to greet us at the door.\nSomehow, I don\u2019t feel comforted by their greetings. Instead, I feel like\nthey\u2019re trying to deceive us with their perfect looks. All around me,\neveryone\u2019s life seems so perfect with their cookie-cutter nuclear families.\n.\nI find myself falling victim to the same plot I\u2019ve fallen for many times.\nEveryone is hidden behind an imaginary mask. We\u2019re all tempted to focus\nmore on the outside of the people we\u2019re around. We see they have more\nmoney, married parents, and a smile on their lips. But we so often neglect\nto see the whole picturebecause the truth is, everybody is struggling.\nIt\u2019s more important to prepare our hearts for the message of God than it is\nto dress our bodies for a weekly meeting. But man, it\u2019s easier to slap on a\npretty shirt than to open your broken heart.\n.\nGod sees our scars deep within. He calls our hearts to be open to His\nmessage. And He also calls us to see the broken beauty of others too. Jesus\nsaid, Healthy people don\u2019t need a doctorsick people do. I have come to\ncall not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are\nsinners and need to repent (Luke 5:31-32). Jesus came to heal the sick,\nforgive the sinners, and fix the brokenness of this world that is all a\nresult of sin. He came to save us by dying on the cross and rising from the\ngrave for us. So, when we come to Jesus, we don\u2019t have to be afraid to show\nHim who we really are, without a mask. The Lord looks at our hearts, and He\nsees that we all need Him to heal us from the inside. So He says, Come to\nme, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you\nrest (Matthew 11:28).\n.\nWhen you find yourself wishing for someone else\u2019s perfect life, remember\nthis: they have struggles too. And God is inviting all of us to come to Him\nwith open hearts, to just come as we are. Corinna Kahrs\n.\n In what ways are you tempted to compare yourself to others? How does\ncomparison distract us from the gospel (or good news) about Jesus and\nloving each other as He loves us? (John 15:12)\n.\n Who is a trusted Christian in your life that you feel safe being yourself\naround, without a mask? (If no one comes to mind, you can ask God to reveal\nsomeone in the future.)\n.\nPeople judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart. 1\nSamuel 16:7 (NLT)\nRead Verses:\n1 Samuel 16:1-1 Samuel 16:13; Luke 5:27-Luke 5:32; Romans 15:7