You didn’t plan to build a false self.
You just needed something to hold the fear.
So you got really good at being strong. Or helpful. Or funny.
You learned how to hide the ache behind a mask that felt safer than the truth.
And maybe that did protect you once.
But now… it’s the thing keeping you from being found.
When God asked Adam, “Where are you?”, it wasn’t because He didn’t know.
It was because Adam didn’t.
He had never hidden before.
Never worn shame like a costume.
Never believed he had to earn the love that made him in the first place.
God wasn’t angry.
He was grieving.
Not over the rule that was broken—but the connection that was lost.
And still, He came walking.
Still, He asked the question.
Still, He wanted Adam to know: I’m here. And I’m looking for you.
Maybe He’s asking you too.
Not to expose you—but to wake you.
To help you see that hiding never healed anything.
You don’t have to keep wearing what pain made for you. God still knows your name underneath it.
