Identity Thief #2

A few weeks ago I shared on some of the things I have experienced this year, I did say that I would write again “next week” but life got in the way, maybe my next blog will be about discipline…ha! For now I want to continue along the line of Identity because I think it’s one of the most vital parts of our existence – how we view ourselves!

Let me start with a few questions: what or who defines you? Is it your job, your call, your parents, your sickness, your life circumstances, your kids, your friends….or a mixture of all sorts of things? Someone I admire greatly wrote a comment on my previous blog saying that lately they’d been thinking, what if it was all stripped away; their job, their family, their everything, what would be left, what would remain? What if that happened to you? If you took away all the things you do and all the things you have, what would be left?

I think that far too many of us start off in this life with dreams, ambitions, goals and all sorts of grand plans, but it seems that as “life” happens, those things can so easily get stripped away. Far too many times, we allow the things that happen to us, or the busy-ness of life/work/job/relationships/kids etc, or the conditions that we might be labelled with, to become our identity and to stop us from realising who we really are and who we really are capable of becoming!

I want to make it clear that I don’t believe that what we DO or what we HAVE, the dreams, goals or achievements reached etc, should define our identity, they definitely add to our life, they can help shape our character through the things that we experience along the journey, but what you do does not define who you are. What you have does not define who you are or who you were created as, or who you are becoming.

John 1v1-5 says, “In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.”

He existed before it all, He always has and always will, nothing was created EXCEPT through Him, Jesus! You were created through Him and by Him and for Him, He gave life to you and He wants you to shine!

Ultimately, we need to understand and have a revelation of the fact that we are defined by WHO’S we are, by Who created us, not even by who we think we are or by what we do. So many things in this life come along to try and steal our identity; labels that were placed upon us, sicknesses that try to take hold of our bodies, words that are flung at us, medical conditions that we are diagnosed with, circumstances that try to rob us of the abundant life we’ve been promised, relationships that don’t go the way we wanted and leave us wondering what went wrong, but not one of these things define who you are and you CAN stop those incorrect identities as you begin to declare who you truly are despite what life has thrown at you!

You have been created with a certain identity, formed in the image of God, but only you can accept that identity and walk in it.

God has given us the creative power of speech, just as He spoke and the world was formed, He has given us the ability to speak over our lives and our circumstances to bring change. Our words create our world.

So who are you and what are you allowing to define your life and your world?

You are formed in the image of God (Genesis 1:27)
You are more than a conquerer (Romans 8:37)
You are a ruler with great authority (Genesis 1:28, Luke 10:19)
You are His workmanship created for good works (Ephesians 2:10)
You are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:13-14)
You are thought of constantly (Psalm 139:17)
You are full of purpose and destiny (Jeremiah 29:11)
You are rich in the inheritance of Christ (Ephesians 1:11-14)
You are a child of God (Galatians 3:26)
You are forgiven (Romans 5:8)
You are free (Galatians 5:1)
You are secure (Romans 8:38)

…..and the list goes on and on!

Can I encourage you to 1) Stop judging yourself, stop viewing yourself through the eyes of your “role” or any sickness or condition that you’ve been labeled with, or through what you have achieved or gained or done in this life, all that is wonderful (except the sickness bit!) but it isn’t truly who you ARE! 2) Be careful not to assess others by what they do, or by the thing in, or on their life, first and foremost they are a child of God created in His image, take time to get to know them and always remember that everyone is on a journey!

This has been a big lesson for me this year, stripping back all that I “did” or felt called to “do” and discovering that none of that makes me who I am, who I am is completely wrapped up in Jesus Christ! I absolutely believe that each and every one of us is called to do great things for Him and that He wants us to live life to the full and dream big dreams and do wonderful things, my dreams and the call I feel upon my life are so much bigger than me, but the place that I have come to is a place of surrender, truthfully able to say that if none of those things ever occur, I am content in being a child of God, content with Him alone. Ultimately it’s where it all starts and it’s where it all ends and the goal is to ensure that it’s the way it is the whole way through! It is a lesson I’m sure I will have to continue to learn and be reminded of over and over for the rest of my life, but again, it’s a journey!

He is SO good and He loves you more than you’ll ever know, not because of what you do, but because of who you are – HIS.

Much love, Jodie xx