Where is Your Identity?
We live in a world where identity seems to be of utmost importance. Many people are basing their identity in many different things and for many different reasons. Women base their identity in a lot of things: family, marriage, children, physical appearance, money, etc.
All of these things are fleeting at best and empty sources. But what is identity?
Identity is: the fact of being who or what a person or thing is; who a person is, or the qualities of a person or group that make them different from others; the distinguishing character or personality of an individual
How you see yourself will determine how you express yourself to those around you. Identity is everything to you. If you don’t know who you are and like who you are – you cannot exist with the rest of the world in a healthy productive way. You will exist, but what will you be doing.
The message you send to the world about who you are must be truthful and be clear. That is the message you are trying to send to others. It will also be the message of who God says that you are. Who you tell the world you are, you must believe that is who you actually are. Both must be in line with God’s message of who you are as His daughter and beloved.
Identity will do that.
Identity is made up of two things: Self-image and social identity. It is critical that you know your identity. It consists of first, your self-image or what some call self-esteem. This is how you see yourself and how you feel about yourself.
The second is social identity. Social identity is how you define yourself in relationship to other people or groups. This could be where you feel you belong, where you feel included and your role in that group. Our world is completely socially driven. A social media presence says a lot to people but what does it really say about the real you.
You must be careful if you define yourself in one of these two ways negatively.
How you see yourself will determine how you express yourself to those around you. The message that you send to the world about who you are needs to be both truthful and the true message you are trying to send.
To see yourself in the right way you must see yourself the way God sees you.
You need to know that you are radically loved by God and that piece of knowledge alone, gives you permission to become a radical lover of yourself and of others.
Here is a key: What you behold you will always become positive or negative.
Think about what you are beholding. Think about what you continually gaze at. The more you gaze at God the more you become like Him. The more you look at Him and His ways the more you become like Him.
God is nothing like our sin, our negativity, our failures and our brokenness.
Anything negative in your thinking, in your language and in the way that you view yourself, must be challenged by Jesus. He will challenge your self-image.
Jesus is relentless about challenging you.
He asks why we think a negative way and works with us to change your negative identity and the way you see yourself. Why does He do this?
Because He sees us through His Son Jesus. Perfect and in the way He created us.
You are also not defined by a group. You are not defined by the things you do with a certain group. Don’t get me wrong, certain groups are wonderful and can do a lot in society and in your life, but if you define yourself by them, the real you can be lost
The kingdom of God makes you extraordinary. You can’t be in Jesus and be mediocre. Mediocrity is not your identity.
Your identity is in Christ. Gaze at Him and Him alone. Let your identity be rooted in Him alone. Let Him tell you who you really are.
For more information and in-depth teaching on this and more please be looking out for my Grace to Live Empowerment Program coming in January 2020. A powerful course coming on teachable.com for women to help them live and be empowered. I have a Facebook group called Grace to Live Coaching. Here is the link if you would like to join.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/638244659906752/?ref=share
