Identity…

Identity…

This week I was hit by the harsh reality that I didn’t really have my identity figured out.  I thought I did.  If you would have asked me who I was I would have said My name is Kyle, I am a father, a husband, a machinist, and a really tall guy.  I could have gone on for a while with other descriptors of myself, but I wouldn’t have said a son of God and honestly, I probably wouldn’t have said a Christ follower at least until the very end. 

My whole idea of myself was wrecked when I was confronted with the fact that God is not only a master with power over us, and he is also not just an authoritative father figure for us.  He is a compassionate father as well.  I have never thought of him that way.  I can make excuses for the reasons why my father on earth wasn’t very compassionate and loving, or I was never taught that in my religion classes back when I was young and still in school, but the fact of the matter is, I never read it for myself in the book.  I never took the time and put out the effort to learn these things.

I am currently reading the book The Titus Ten with a group of guys at my church.  Since going through our bi yearly men’s challenges, and still meeting weekly in between, we are becoming more like brothers.  A lot of these guys have known each other for years, others like me, only for a short period of time but it doesn’t matter.  We are all invited into the fold and are learning from each other. 

Reading this book and discussing it with other men is changing my whole perspective on what a real man looks like.  I have had it very wrong for my whole life basically.  I had my identity as my occupation, or my hobbies, or my family life.  I never considered that I was a son of God and also needed to look at God as a friend.  By ignoring these crucial details, I have modeled my life after being more of an authoritarian father, a lukewarm Christian at best, and a person who was more self-serving than anything else. 

From here on out I will be making changes to how I operate in my life.  I will strive to put others ahead of me.  I will focus on learning God’s word.  I will lead my family in the ways they should be led.  I will build up others around me.  Notice I said “I will” in all those statements, I am not giving myself a way out because I probably would when the going gets tough.  I will definitely fall short, I will fail miserably at times, and I will chicken out at some point, but the important part is that I won’t quit after those times like I have in the past.

This week, I encourage you to take a deep look at your identity and see if you like what you see.  Hopefully you love what you find, but if not start looking at ways to get yourself where you need to be.  That’s what I’ll be doing.

Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.