Remembe
r the classic song Who are You? by The Who? It asks a question many of us stare down on a daily basis. We struggle with how we see ourselves, how others see us, and even with how God sees us. Our world is little to no help in this matter. Basically everything we do seems to have a massive effect on our identity. Successful at work? Then you are a success life. Get fired or have a bad season? Then you are a failure in life. The way we dress, every action we take, and even the actions of those around us (employees, family, co-workers, friends, etc.) seem to move the pendulum of our identity. We are thusly constantly trying to insure that people perceive us a certain way, even if that’s not WHO God created us to be.
I don’t know about you, but every movement of that identity pendulum really stresses me out. I’ve spent so much of my life worried about how others see me, as well as plenty of time struggling with how I view myself. Its a stressful way to live. And here’s the thing: its not how we were created to live. Checkout these two verses:
You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
Psalm 139:13-14
He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:11-13
Our identity is not something that is not up to us or the world around us, it was decided by God when we were carefully, and purposefully, formed. You may not always like everything about yourself, wishing for less belly, more hair, and a brain that functions at a significantly higher level (well, those are my wants at least!). Yet, you are who God made you to be. And that’s a wonderful thing, for you’ve been made to be a child of God. Think about that: YOU have been created and saved to be part of God’s family forever. God’s pendulum doesn’t change with your every action, but his love for you is steadfast. So, instead of wondering who we are, or complaining about who we seem to be, lets embrace who God made us to be. Because God made us for a reason, and his reason includes how we can uniquely change and impact the world. So, who are you? You are an amazing creation of God created with a purpose that no one else has. Embrace it and live it each and everyday.
