No Wonder We Feel Ugly All the Time

think, “Hasn't this kind of thing been around for a while?" - this photo filter takes it to another level.

It’s still you - but in the same way that people’s kitchens are technically still theirs after one of those TLC home renovation shows comes in.

Unfortunately, unlike the kitchen, this is a photo filter - and once you put the phone down, the real you feels way worse about how you naturally look. As one of its users lamented, "Why are these getting like this? No wonder everyone feels f-ing ugly all the time."

She's not the only one. Thousands of women have posted videos of themselves using the filter. One moment they're laughing, the next, they’re shaking their heads in disbelief. Overall, their tone feels somber and resigned - as if to say, "Is this the world we are now living in?"

But why the intense reaction? The angst reflects one of the great modern paradoxes: fake is becoming too real.

Most well-adjusted people know that what social media portrays isn't accurate, and they choose not to compare themselves to the carefully curated and touched-up images they see online. But what happens when we can no longer tell what's real and what isn't?

Photo filters far more subtle than Bold Glamour are convincing millions of people that a rare and frankly unattainable standard of beauty is normal. And even if we know it's fake, does it matter? When looking that good is just a click away, who can resist? As it becomes easier to convince others of a false version of ourselves, albeit digital, we are more incentivized to maintain the illusion.

The consequences are devastating. We are in the midst of a mental health crisis largely due to the deadly combo of smartphones plus social media. This is especially true for adolescent girls. As a dad of two girls under five, I am sincerely afraid of the future they are walking into.

Part of the problem is simply one of comparison. Growing up, I was a terrible skateboarder, but that was fine because there weren’t many of us. Today, kids are constantly confronted with the best, the most talented, and the most beautiful.

Feeling adequate in this environment is virtually impossible. And even for the select few who are that beautiful or that talented, it’s fleeting and doesn’t bring lasting satisfaction.

Something needs to change. People are desperate for a vision of identity and value that is not determined by how they stack up against what the algorithm feeds them.

As followers of Jesus, we have the answer. God grants inalienable value to every person. In Him, we can find shelter from the cruel and capricious external sources of validation. This should give us the strength of character to resist being sucked into the same losing game.

Practically, we can spend more time in the Bible than online. We can stay off most, if not all, social media, and we can resist participating in the vanity of our culture, both in person and online. Parents, don’t get your kids a phone. Let them hate you now and thank you later.

And let’s tell people the truth and ask God to move. Only the power of the Holy Spirit working through the proclamation of the Gospel can rescue people from the powers and principalities that are destroying them through these insidious lies and the platforms that perpetuate them.

So let’s show people what true boldness looks like - and tell your sons and daughters, friends, neighbors, and colleagues that God created them in His image - and that this is where beauty truly lies.

Want to watch the full conversation? Check out Bold Glamour, AI Therapy, and Removing Gender from the Bible