Have you ever noticed that when you have become disgusted with the way things are going in your life, the first thing we do is try and do something about it.

I’m overweight

I’ll go on a diet

–

I’m lonely

I’ll join a dating site

–

I am underpaid

I’ll get a second job

–

I am sad,

I’ll drink some wine, exercise incessantly, fill in the blank

Do you see the pattern here?

If you don’t or if you’re not sure, in each of these phrases,

• the first starts with an  I AM statement
• the 2^nd starts with I WILL…an intention to remedy the issue through an action

I have to ask, Are we Human Beings or Human Doings?

Duh

So why is that we constantly declare what we are, even if it’s not what we want to be true?

Did you know that your brain hears what you are saying?

Do you know what you plant in that brain will grow?

So stop thinking that you can plant seeds of negativity is going to get you where you want to go

We can only operate and create our lives from who we believe we are, in our identity.

As believers what this means that we have the truth of the Word to keep us rooted in who God says we are. (Though we may or may not actually choose to live that way or know that we can!)

For people not of Christian faith, what this means you’ll identify yourself in relationship to what your “source” says you are, or at very minimum, with no higher power you’ll base your identity on your own values, the values impressed upon you at an early age and over the course of your lifetime.

As human beings our words, actions, believes, emotions, thoughts and the world we live in stem directly from our identity which is who we are.

Example, I don’t drink alcohol, not because I had the willpower to stop (because I never had that), I don’t drink because who I am is a Non-drinker. And that is no more of a judgmental statement about anyone else as it is for me to say, I am blonde or I am a woman, or I am of Polish and German decent.

Here is a challenge for you. Ask yourself:
What am I committed to (be totally honest here)?

Who do I have to be or become to follow through on that commitment?

What are the traits that you need (not the actions you need to take)?
How does a person with those traits go about their business in the world

Here is the hierarchy that I mentioned earlier and an understanding of each:

When we want to live a different way then the way we are living, all change needs to be instigated at the identity level.

Our identities are often formed without our input, because they are shaped in us before the age of 8 by the people around us. Which unfortunately doesn’t always set us up so well (because it’s based on their perspectives, values, behaviors etc) and is why we see generations of the same type of issues on family bloodlines.

It is also why it’s important to understand that even though we’ve operated from a specific identity in the past, we still have the power to change it though it takes work and perseverance. You’ll literally be overwriting your life’s inner wiring!

As believers, it’s very easy to understand the basics of our identity because they are rooted and formed by what God says about our identity

Gen 1:27- He created us in his IMAGE

1Jn 1-3 What marvelous love the Father has extended to us! Just look at it – we’re called children of God! That’s who we really are. But that’s also why the world doesn’t recognize us or take us seriously, because it has no idea who he is or what he’s up to.

John 12:1- for all who have received him have the right to be called sons of God (He is the king, so we are royalty)

Eph 1:5 Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!)

Romans 6:6- our old selves died with him, and now we are new creations…no longer slaves to sin

1Peter 2:9 But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you –

And then, we also get to layer on top of that, our inherent gifts and talents that make us unique and special to God and in the world. Things like: I am creative, I am an artist, I am a forerunner, I am a leader.

For those who are not rooted in God’s word, as I’ve already mentioned you’ll base your identity on you believe your higher power or source says about you, and if you don’t have a source, your identity will be based on what you’ve come to believe about yourself through feedback of the outer world and your interpretations of that.

If you want to dig in a little more, you can get a copy of the overview and worksheet so you to do some digging and discovery in your own life. Keep me posted on that journey of discovery!