Reclaiming Your Identity

In the movie Mulan, there is a scene where the women are getting ready to meet the matchmaker. Their whole life comes down to this moment where they can find a husband and honor their family by creating a legacy. The women of that time had one job which was to present themselves in a way that they might be viewed as good material for a wife. When the match-making doesn't go well, Mulan sings a song questioning her identity. In the famous song, "Reflection", we see her identity come crumbling down, leaving her lost and confused.

Like in the story of Mulan, the world today tries to give us an identity different than the one God has given us. We find these identities in what we do, gender, sexuality, race, zodiac signs, etc. Most jobs today make you take an Enneagram test or the Myers-Briggs personality test. While these tests are helpful, I can't tell you how many people I've known who have made this their entire identity. You see, we try to study these personality tests to tell us who we are more than we rely on God's word to tell us who we are. We try to rely on all these other things to lead and guide us through our lives instead of making room to allow the Holy Spirit to. We scroll through social media to find the answers to these huge questions about who we are, rather than really diving deep into the voice of our Creator. Here's the thing, I am a fan of the Enneagram and Myer's Briggs. I have social media, and I like it. Yet, I know that no one can tell me more about who I am than the one who formed me in my mother's womb.

Who or what is going to define your worth? That’s the question we all must ask ourselves. I don't mean to step on anyone's toes, but some of you are living for a parent who's no longer living or for someone who will never give you what you're looking for. Perhaps, you're living for an ex-partner, thinking, "I'll show them what they're missing", when they aren't giving a second thought about you. We're living for them, whoever "them" may be. The reality is, as Christians if we are living for anybody or anything besides Jesus, we are running a race we will never win.

Our identity in Christ should be above any identity in a political party, sexuality, ethnicity, gender, etc. We must always ensure that Biblical principles take precedence over cultural principles. This is where the culture of today has it wrong. It goes without saying that we live in a culture that tells us to identify as whatever we like. Yet, when we do this, we rewrite the superior identity given to us by the creator of the world. We must allow God to be God, and keep Him over everything. Let me remind you, that God does not make mistakes. It goes against His very nature. He was not confused about who you were when creating you. We serve a God who is intentional, unchanging, and without fault. As a result, we have been given an identity that is constant and perfect.

Identity drives our behavior. If we are walking around viewing ourselves as anything less than a child of the most high God, then we are finding our worth in the wrong things. If we are carrying an identity that says we are garbage, we won't have room in our hearts to carry the truth. The Lord is calling you to a life of freedom. Freedom to live in an identity that is unchanging and unwavering. The enemy has held your identity long enough. But this post won't change your identity. The decision to believe in the identity God has given you, will.

Our identity as Christians isn't one that is achieved, it is received. As humans, we all crave assurance that we are welcome, loved, and accepted. We need that reassurance of love and value in every season of our lives. Yet, basically, every other culture and religion gives us an identity based on performance. This may look like living up to our parents, following a community, bringing honor to our family, creating a legacy, etc. From the beginning of time, we've seen this in cultures and traditions, such as Mulan. This becomes an incredible pressure to perform well for the approval of man or false gods. However, Christianity says "no" to this ideology. Instead, God tells us that good has to be achieved, but you can't do it. If you try to do it, you will always be insecure and unsuccessful. Modern and traditional identities are all unstable and fragile to some extent.

2 Corinthians 5:21 reads, "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." What does this mean? It doesn't mean He made Jesus sinful, but, rather, Jesus was treated as if He had done all the sinful things we have done. So, when we become Christians and we stop basing our identity on our performance, we have a newfound identity rooted in what Jesus Christ did for us on the cross. God doesn't accept us because of anything we do, will do, or have done. He accepts us because of Jesus' atoning blood. Look at the end of the verse above. It says, "...so that in Him, we might become the righteousness of God." Meaning, that just as Jesus was treated as sinful, God now treats us as righteous before Him. The only one in the whole universe whose opinion counts sees you in Jesus Christ and says you are more valuable than all the riches in this world.

When we identify with who God says we are, it is incredible. Yet, it's not enough to just identify with it if we don't let it change us. There was a time in my life when I could recite everything about who God said I was, but I didn't live like I believed it. I could tell you that God made me fearfully and wonderfully made all day long. Yet, at the end of the day, I was still insecure. I could say all these things about who God said I was, but it never actually changed who I was. A lot of us are camped out here. Why? Because as I mentioned, we are so busy finding our worth and identity in so many other things. If God is not God over your life, then what He says about you will never change who you are. If God doesn't hold much value in your life, then by default what He says won't either. If your physical appearance or weight is number one, then that is what will hold your value. If your relationship or popularity status is number one, that will get the value. Whatever is most important to you will shape who you are and the identity you give yourself. However, if God is your top priority and you understand you are His child, it has the power to drastically change the way you live and view yourself.

The world and the enemy do everything in their power to cause us to see the differences in ourselves for the purpose of dividing us. What I want you to understand is that it doesn't really matter where you come from, the sins of your past, your race, your gender, or political affiliation, because when we come together, we share the body and the blood of Christ. Each and every one of us. We are the body of Christ, and our identity is shaped by the death and resurrection of Him. Nothing defines you except the reality that Jesus Christ, the only righteous man, saved you, a sinner, and now you are filled with the Holy Spirit. You are a son or daughter of Christ, period. If your identity doesn't align with the word of God then it isn't the truth of your identity. If you're struggling with your identity, I want to end by telling you what I identify as. I identify as fearfully and wonderfully made, forgiven, saved, a woman of God, chosen, royal, justified, and a temple for the Holy Spirit to dwell. I identify as His.

May your roots run deep, and your faith remain strong! As always, Stay Rooted, my friends!