April 21 – Living from the True Self
Your True Self is not something you find; it’s something you awaken to. Cynthia Bourgeault
Gregg’s Reflection
When I live from my True Self, my actions and words feel aligned with something much deeper than my own desires or plans. There is a settledness—a knowing that I am living out of who God created me to be, not scrambling to prove myself or protect an image. The Buddhists call it finding “the face you had before you were born.” The pace may still be full, but the anxious striving that fuels the False Self falls away.
This way of being requires continual returning. Life has a way of pulling us back into the old patterns of self-protection, performance, and people-pleasing. The True Self doesn’t need to be defended—it simply is. It rests in God’s love as the ground of all identity, even when storms swirl and shadows loom.
Living from the True Self isn’t about perfection. It’s about authenticity and surrender—choosing again and again to live from the center God has given, rather than the image we try to project. This is where our deepest joy and greatest freedom are found, because here we are most truly ourselves in Christ.
Scripture
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Colossians 3:3
Ancient Quotes
The glory of God is the human being fully alive; and the life of the human consists in beholding God.
Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies, Book IV, 20:7
Know thyself.
Inscription at the Temple of Apollo, Delphi
Modern Quotes
Your True Self is not something you find; it’s something you awaken to.
Cynthia Bourgeault, The Wisdom Way of Knowing, p. 61
One of the most important results you can bring into the world is the you that you really want to be.
Robert Fritz, The Path of Least Resistance
Journaling Prompts
- Where in your life do you feel most connected to your True Self?
- What helps you return to your center when you drift into False Self patterns?
- How might your relationships change if you consistently lived from your True Self?
👉 Go deeper into this week’s theme:
Read the full Week 16 Reflection: False Self/True Self