How Do You See Yourself?
When it comes to your Christian identity, how do you see yourself? Are you able to say that you are “fearfully and wonderfully made”? Or do you struggle with self doubt?
As Christians, How Should We See Ourselves?
Second Corinthians 5:17 says,
“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
II Corinthians 5:17
How should we see ourselves? This is definitely a polarizing question among Christians. Some people think we should spend little or no time on self-reflection.
Others believe that seeing ourselves in light of who the Bible says we are in Christ motivates us and empowers us to live as we should.
How Do You See Yourself?
I hold to the second view, though I do understand the dangers of spending too much time thinking about ourselves. It can be too easy to become self-centred and self-absorbed, neither of which is a good thing.
Still, it is good to ask ourselves the following questions: What do I feel strongly about? What gifts and talents do I have? What abilities would I like to develop?
While it makes sense to ask ourselves these questions, I don’t believe we should stop there. Instead, I think we should also ask the following questions: Do my passions honour God? Does His Word indicate these things matter to Him as well? How can I use my innate abilities, which are actually gifts from God, to glorify Him and bless others? How can I better serve Him and those He brings into my life by developing my skills?
Silencing The Doubts
Some of us may be able to answer both sets of questions with relative ease, but there are those who are overwhelmed and disheartened at just the thought of examining themselves in this way.
These are some of the thoughts that may come to mind:
I can’t sing well. I don’t play an instrument. I can’t speak to large crowds.
So and so does that so much better than I ever could.
What do I have to offer the kingdom of God?
I’m too old. I’ll leave things to the younger generation.
I’m too young. No-one thinks I have anything to contribute.
And on and on it goes.
Finding Our Identity As Christians
I believe the only real way to silence our inner voice when it fills us with doubt is to dig into the Scriptures and hold onto what they say about our identity as Christians. After all, it is God’s Word and we can believe Him.
It’s easier to do so when we realize it’s not because of our own merit that the Lord sees us as He does but because of His mercy and grace and what Jesus accomplished for us by dying on the cross for our sin and rising victorious over sin and death.
God sees us through this filter and as we come to do the same, we will believe that we can accomplish all He calls us to accomplish.
Realizing it is all because of Him also gives us a godly perspective of why we must walk humbly before Him. No matter how gifted or talented we are, we owe it all to Him. Plus, we are called to use these gifts and talents for His plans and purposes—not our own.
We Are Fearfully And Wonderfully Made!
Here are just a few things the Bible says about believers in the Lord Jesus Christ:
The psalmist proclaimed in Psalm 139:14 that he was “fearfully and wonderfully made”—and so are we.
Ephesians 2:10 is a corresponding verse. It says we are “his workmanship.”
In John 15:5, Jesus says, “I am the vine; you are the branches.”
Second Corinthians 5:21 says Jesus became sin for us so “we might become the righteousness of God.”
First Peter 2:9 says we are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession.”
You can find a partial list of who we are in Christ on this site:
http://www.openbible.info/topics/who_am_i_in_christ
How do you see yourself? We would love to hear from you! Contact us at HopeStreamRadio
Steph Nickel
Steph is a freelance writer and editor. She is the coauthor of Paralympian Deb Willows’ award-winning memoir, Living Beyond My Circumstances, published by Castle Quay Books. Deb and Steph are working on a follow-up book.
Steph Beth Nickel is eclectically interested and eclectically involved. In all she does, Steph seeks to nurture and inspire. She is currently working on the first book in a nonfiction series. Nurture and Inspire LOVE is a compilation of the first devotionals she wrote for HopeStreamRadio.
You can visit her website, stephbethnickel.com, to learn more about her.
Visit Steph’s contributor’s page or at Steph Nickel’s Eclectic Interests.
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