So you have to stand up and speak… or you have to see that person… or you have to think about that painful past… In these ‘moments of truth’, there are many ‘voices’ in your head, many ‘words’ coming to you. The key challenge, the ‘truth’ that is in the balance and being assailed by lies, is the one concerning your identity – who you are. What you believe about your identity - who you are - determines what you think, feel, and do. If you suddenly feel small or stupid, you will be timid, you will look to this or that person for approval, you will question whether you have the ‘right’ to say what you want to say, to hold the conviction you hold... You might shrink when you should rise! You might rise at times, when you should fade… It is a question of ‘authority’ and ‘power’. There is no self-help book or therapist in the land that has authority to tell you who you truly – truly! – are. Here’s a mind-blower – you don’t have authority over who you truly are! You can chant all night long about who you want to be, but you don’t speak ‘self’ into being. You didn’t speak yourself into the womb, and you don’t speak your soul into identity. Two points on this from Scripture: First: Your True Self Is In Christ Alone. Jesus is the one who made you, holds you, and ‘identifies’ you. (Col 1:15-20; Heb 1:3; John 1:3) He gives you your ‘secret name’. (Rev 2:17) Only in coming to – and through – Christ, do you enter into the dominion of your true self. You may be super-confident in your professional or even social realm, but these count for nothing! (Sorry, it’s true! – John 6:63) When it comes to the real you, the one, in fact, that people are really ‘feeling’, it’s a question of sin, repentance, faith, spirit, soul. Jesus alone holds these keys. You must know him to access the true you! Secondly: Jesus Whispers Your Name To You. If you have repented of your sin and put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, you are his. He will ‘whisper’ to you, the true word of your true self. Yes, there will always be challenges to this identity that God gives you. It will come from others, from your past sin, from the devil himself, and from your prideful heart. (Rev 12:10, I John 3:20) These challenges are often the ‘noisier’ voices, the more dramatic ‘word’ to you. But if you listen – and you do know Christ’s voice (Jn 10:27) – you will hear the solid, eternal ‘whisper’ of Jesus to you, speaking the ‘true you’ to any and every moment when you are called to stand. Stand on his whisper! (I Kings 19:11-13) Believe his report over your life! His grace is sufficient for you here! (2 Cor 12:9-10) Soar!
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AuthorPeter Walker. I hope you enjoy these reflections. Please feel free to comment!:) Archives
February 2024
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