Written by The question “who are you?” can be answered in several different ways.
Depending on the person and the nature of the relationship, I can simply tell the person my name or even what I do for a living. Even when we are silent we tell others about ourselves. When I was completing my undergraduate work at Johnson Bible College (Johnson University), I had a few people come up to me and ask, “What’s your story?” This single question opens up the door to multiple outcomes and many stories. The information you share may just appropriately fit within the context of your conversation or it may have the potential take the conversation to an entirely different place.
We read biographies and autobiographies about leaders, athletes, political figures, etc. The information shared as we read may have multiple purposes, but the goal of the literature is to share the story of an individuals life, aspects of what they accomplished, how they overcame and persevered, their downfalls, or just how extravagant or awful their life was/is.
If you were given the chance to write your own story, what would you say? Would it be a tragedy? Would you solely focus on the positive and steer away from the negative? Is your story an “underdog” story with an intense climax with Hollywood effects? Would you write about your days working 9 – 5, coming home, eating dinner, kissing your husband/wife goodnight and then pressing repeat? What about the lazy Sunday afternoons after church watching football and eating pizza? Some of you may be thinking,
“What the heck would I even talk about?”
“My life hasn’t been that exciting.”
“Who am I and what have I done?”
When we look in the mirror, we see ourselves for who we are. There are zero secrets and we are able to concretely develop our sense of identity. Who do you say you are? What/who do others say you are? Does any of that matter? We say, “It only matters what you think about yourself. Forget what others think!” Realistically we will usually care a little about what others think about us (even if it is simply not true), but how much do we allow others to influence our own thoughts and ideas? Those who say they do not care what others think may lack significant human connection or they turn away from emotional and potentially meaningful/significant relationships due to former disappointments or past hurts.
Above all, what do we believe God thinks about us? God’s Word tells us that we are a chosen people, we are saved by the love and grace Jesus showed by dying on a cross, God endlessly pursues us regardless of who we are, where we have been and what we have done – His love never fails.
Who do you say you are? What do others say? What is true?
What does God say about you? Do you say He is disappointed? Is He is ashamed of what you did yesterday, last week, last month, or even 5 years ago? Are you too far gone to be forgiven, to be saved, to be healed?
We can live our lives believing we are “average” and believing we have nothing special to share. We are good people, but I am nobody in comparison to who I know – or – we can experience and share the overwhelming love and acceptance from the God who loves us and gives us hope. Jesus proved this by being obedient to death, even death on a cross.
You may have questions and I may have answers. Find out the truth God has for you. Please email me at logan@groffandassociates.com or by calling 317-474-6448 x 112.