Why look within?

I haven't checked in to Gaia lately, but when I saw this question in my Inbox it really gave me pause.

I've struggled with the answer to this question many times over. Suffering nearly half my life with depression, I never used to look inside because what I saw was, to me, no good. Imperfect. Ugly. Broken. Irreparable. Unworthy. Why look at that? I used to ask myself - Who really wants to see that?

Well, the answer is -- I do. I had to face the "reality" of what I saw within myself to be able to move past it. To confront it head on and learn how to manipulate it into something that I would be proud to see within myself.

This time last year, that negativity was what I saw within me. Today, I understand why I was seeing it, and I'm changing my perceptions. How?

Imperfect -- God does not ask me to be perfect, so I should not ask it of myself. He loves me just as I am.
Ugly -- In the eyes of my Father, I am beautiful. His beauty shines through me.
Broken & "Irreparable" -- My faults, my brokenness allow God a medium to work within me, leaving more of Himself in me with every crack that he mends.
Unworthy -- "For God so loved the world He sent His only Son..." Who am I to call myself unworthy in the face of such love?

I look within to remind myself of where I was and to give myself the vision of where I want to be. Knowing where I was before, and that I no longer want to believe such things of myself, tells me where I want to go - it's the building block, the foundation, of what will be my future. I think that's a pretty good reason to look within, don't you?

Cheers,

Anda.