I was on the wrestling team in high school. I had great coaches who cared for me and amazing teammates who felt like family. The one thing I didn’t like was making sure I stayed at a certain weight.

One year as we were getting ready for our first wrestling meet, I was worried that I would be overweight. I didn’t eat much in the days leading up to it.

The day of the meet came. I stepped on to the scale. I was so underweight that I was close to hitting the next weight class down. So for the next several meets, my goal was to hit that lower weight class. It was a miserable goal for a high school student going through a growth spurt.

Maybe you’ve had some miserable goals in your life too. You might not know what it’s like to make weight for high school wrestling, but everyone knows the misery of trying to be someone you’re not.

You see the way someone else lives, and you try to meet their lifestyle. You notice the way someone else dresses, and you try to meet their fashion. You look at the skills of others, and you try to match what they do.

It’s exhausting trying to be someone you’re not. It’s like a miserable wrestling match against reality. Remember that God made you unique. Who you are is found in Jesus, so be faithful to his calling.

“For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things” (1 Timothy 4:8).