Remember Whose You Are

So this is the third week in our conversation about identity here at Pretty & Wise. I've been thinking a lot about this word...identity. So I began to do a few online searches on the subject. 

Searching for Identity

I did a search on Facebook with the hashtag #identity and was amazed at the number of posts. Many of those posts were personal. Quite a few posts I saw were from people who had done a DNA test and found that they were from a different cultural group than they had been raised in and were intent on embracing the culture of their newly found 'identity'. There were posts from life coaches telling you how to be the best 'you', you can be. Many posts were political, social, and cultural.  And yes, some were about finding your identity in Christ...or with Christ. Frankly, there were too many #identity posts to read through them all. 

I did a search on Amazon and discovered there are 70,000 books listed with the word identity in the title. 70,000 books!

I googled the word identity and it came up with 812,000,000 results.  
We seem to be obsessed with this word. Obsessed with finding our own identity, whether as an individual or as a collective people group. There seems to be an innate desire within, a longing, to want to understand who we are...or whose we are. 

Whose You Are

Can we really know who we are if we do not know whose we are? 

The hubs and I used to tell our kids(teens at the time) three things every time they left the house without us. 

"I love you, don't be stupid, and remember whose you are." 

They needed to be reminded every time they left the house that we loved them, we expected them to make good decisions, and to remember that they were ambassadors for not only the Idle name, but for Jesus Christ.  They knew that it meant they were expected to be mindful of their upbringing as they made decisions about who they were with and what they were doing. They were to be mindful of what it meant to be an Idle. And most of all they were to be mindful of their choices in light of their relationship with Christ. 

When we remember whose we are, we discover who we are. 

We find the truth of who we are in God's word and through His son Jesus Christ. When we put our trust in Him it changes everything. 

 "But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God." ~ John 1:12 NLT

As children of God, we find our true identity in His son Jesus Christ. This makes us joint-heirs with Christ...to share in His suffering in order that we also might be glorified with Him (Romans 8:17). For God so loved the world...you and I...that He sent His one and only son to die for the sins of the world...for your sin and my sin. There is no greater love than that of the sacrificial love of Jesus Christ. He loves us! We find security in knowing Whose we are. The longing gives way to belonging. ​

In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis tells us,
“Your real, new self (which is Christ's and also yours, and yours just because it is His) will not come as long as you are looking for it. It will come when you are looking for Him."

Lewis reminds us we have to let go of ourself, in order to find our real self. You can't save your life if you have not first lost it. If it hasn't died, it can't be raised from the dead. 

"For you died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God."      ~Colossians 3:3

Letting go of self can be hard. While the Bible tells us that we are new creatures in Christ, we still have that struggle with the flesh. We have to let go of some of the old notions of "that's just me", or "I was just made that way." We have gotten so comfortable with our old selves, 'warts and all', that we start to believe the lies of the enemy, that we can't change, that we'll never be different or get better. 

Don't believe the lies. (Don't be stupid). Let go! 

Identity Revealed

As we let go and turn to the Word of God, we participate in the process of sanctification. We begin to look more and more Christ-like and less like our 'old' self. It's like when you pour clean water into a jar of muddy water...the more clean water you pour in the clearer and cleaner the muddy water becomes until finally there is no more dirty water. We can now clearly see the reflection of our true self in the clear water of the Word of God. 

We have to allow room for the Holy Spirit to root out the old as He pours into our lives until we look more and more like the woman God created us to be. 

Yes...you were fearfully and wonderfully made and there are things about you that are unique to you, those things God created within you. So let His light shine and as it shines, your lovely self will be revealed to the world. And sister, when His light reveals who you are, give Him the glory!

 "But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in."  ~ C.S. Lewis 

Oh and don't forget...

God loves you! 
Don't be stupid.
AND Remember Whose you are!

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WRITTEN BY: GAY IDLE

For more from Gay, head to her website: www.gayidle.com

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Photo by Drew Graham on Unsplash