My Identity

Who are you? I am the son of Nathan & Elaine. I am the husband of Sarah. The father of my kids. The Director of camp, the Pastor of church, a friend, a mentor. Some (unfortunately) consider me an enemy or a cheater, a hater or meanie. But who am I? All those titles and things are drawn either from what other people think, or how I am connected to them. They say more about what I do than who I am. Who am I? I am a child of God, forgiven by Christ's shed blood on the cross and loved with an everlasting love. I am a sinner saved by the graceful and powerful love of God that redeemed me in spite of myself. That is my identity. In my life, I live out my identity, so do I live that out? Yes, I need to be a son, a husband, a father, a pastor, a director, a friend. But ahead and beyond those things I must be a child of God. That is my root identity and it should be the one I am truest to. So how about you? Are you a child of God first and foremost? Do you claim Christ as your savior? Which identity will control how you live out your day, interact with and treat people? Will you take on one of your worldly identities today and allow it to override your identity in Christ? Will you treat someone else, perhaps even a brother or sister in the Lord, poorly because you are living some other identity? Will the love and forgiveness that Christ has for you BE who you are today? This Sunday we will be reminded by Peter that how we treat and react to others, especially those who we feel are mistreating us, should be controlled by our identity in Christ. May my identity in my actions, reactions, choices, and thoughts, be those of a Child of God, saved by grace and loved with an everlasting love. I pray yours will be too.