Many of us have forgotten who we really are. Life comes at us hard and it can be a real battle. There is an enemy who fears what you could become and will do whatever he can to defeat you.
We all have identities – those put on us and those we have taken on such as “I am not enough” – or – “I’m not a real man” – or – “I’m a failure” – or – “I’ll always struggle with this” and we have learned to live from this identity.
When we move into this process, we learn of the false self and poser for the first time and start looking below the surface at the 90%. We’re asking, “Who have I become?” and “How have I constructed this fig leaf to self-protect?” and “What is it I am trying to protect?”
It is the process to letting God have access to all of you so He can begin the process of restoration.
God is after the restoration of your true identity.
The true man – is the kind of man who has nothing to hide, nothing to fear, and nothing to prove.
What would it be like to live like this? In our relationships, in our work, in the community, in the moments of decision when the stakes are high – what would it be like to have nothing to hide, nothing to fear and nothing to prove? To just come and bring the real you, the true you? Where you appear wanting nothing in return – no applause, no attention, no compliments and rather, to just offer a real strength and love to those in need.
This is what God is after in us for when we live through this trueness, our greatest work for the Kingdom is possible.
When I hide – or — when the shame of my past shuts me down – or — when my insecurity causes me to live as a poser, I cannot bring strength and love to my world.
When our souls become whole and, over time, we go through this metamorphosis into trueness, we are opened up to the greatest treasure given us by the heart of God: the restoration of our identity.
“We are built to count, as water is made to run downhill. We are placed in a specific context to count in ways no one else does. That is our destiny.”
Dallas Willard
God’s primary mission is our becoming, and He is making his intentions known to us through every whisper in every day. God is pursuing you … daily. Not the false you. Not the poser. He knows the true in you and He is after that daily. Pursuing you. Asking you to rely upon and trust in Him instead of your pose. He sees the man in you who has nothing to hide, nothing to fear and nothing to prove and He wants to teach you how to live this way.
My question for you today is … have you forgotten who you are? We’ll talk more about this next week.
One of my most favorite devotionals is New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp. I encourage you to pick up a copy. Here we are this week talking about this topic and the devotional from 4/12 said this … “Who in the world do you think you are? I’m serious. Who do you think you are? You and I are always assigning to ourselves some kind of identity. And the things that you and I do are shaped by the identity that we have given ourselves. So it’s important to acknowledge that God has not just forgotten you (and that is a wonderful thing), but He has also given you and brand-new identity. If you’re God’s child, you are now a son of the King of Kings and Lord of lords. You are in the family of the Savior who is your friend and brother. You are the temple where the Spirit of God now lives. Yes, it really is true – you have been given a radical new identity.
The problem, sadly, is that many of us live in a constant, or at least a rather regular, state of identity amnesia. We forget who we are, and when we do, we begin to give way to doubt, fear, and timidity. Identity amnesia makes you feel poor when in fact you are rich. It makes you feel foolish when in fact you are in a personal relationship with the One who is wisdom. It makes you feel unable when in fact you have been blessed with strength. It makes you feel alone when in fact, since the Spirit lives inside of you, it is impossible for you to be alone. You feel unloved when in fact, as a child of the Heavenly Father, you have been graced with eternal love. You feel like you don’t measure up when in fact the Savior measured up on your behalf. Identity amnesia sucks the life out of your Christianity in the right here, right now moment in which all of us live.”
Have you forgotten who you are?