Who am I? It’s a question that we all seem to be searching for an answer to. And that’s because knowing our identity is so crucial. God tells us that we’re ‘fearfully and wonderfully made’ (Psalm 139:14 NIV). In fact, He loves us so much that ‘he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing’ (Zephaniah 3:17 ESV). And that’s an amazing thought. God is singing because of us. So we don’t need to feel bad about ourselves, thinking that we’re not acceptable, that we don’t measure up and that we’re unlovable. Because God thinks the total opposite. When we know who we are, and who we belong to, we’re no longer striving to please others, looking for affirmation in all the wrong places and relationships, defensive or insecure, fixated with comparison and competition or afraid to use what God’s given us. Knowing our identity empowers us to live the full life He wants us to live and to do the things He’s calling, and created, us to do. In today’s society it can feel hard to celebrate ourselves and be confident in who we are. We can be afraid that we come across as arrogant or too self-assured. But when we’re living out our God-given identity, we actually become more aware of others and their needs. We can show God’s love to others because we’ve accepted His love for us. We’re told to ‘love your neighbour as yourself’ (Mark 12:31 NIVUK). And if we don’t love ourselves, we can’t love our neighbour correctly. Let’s accept the identity He’s given us and move forward knowing exactly who we are and who we belong to.
