All people are stamped with the divine image and capable of much beauty. But we are also twisted, broken and tied up in knots within ourselves. And this brokenness haunts us. We want so badly to be rid of it that we cover it over with an artificial version of ourselves, an imposter who masquerades as the righteous hero we all wish to be. For those who wear the mask well, the broken soul within is left to sink deeper into insecurity and fear. Who would love me, we wonder, if my greatest flaws were known? Who could embrace such a ruinous person as me? In Psalm 69, the ancient King David is horrified to discover that even his best imposter has failed to secure the love and embrace of those around him. All his acts of righteousness have yielded nothing but reproach. His image now a tattered mess, he is left with only the insecure and weary self that he had sought so fiercely to be rid of. Yet it is that very needy person who discovers the care of God, a tender mercy no mask could provide.