Defining who we are

2 Corinthians 5:17 - “So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away--look, what is new has come.”

I love to play board games. A quick game of Monopoly can quickly become an all-night event if I can find anyone to hang around long enough to finish it. I was introduced to a new game several years ago that fascinated me. I love words, therefore love word games. This particular game gave a key word or phrase to the clue giver. That person would then have to shout out words, one at a time, that gave hints as to what that key word or phrase was. If their team guessed it, they won the point. Easy enough, right? Well, there was one small catch; a list of taboo words that you couldn’t say. So, if you had to describe the Flintstones Cartoon, your off-limit, taboo words might include things like Bedrock, Fred, Hanna Barbara, etc.

I want us to play a game. Look at the following three questions. Come up with some words that you could use to give clues about the answers to anyone trying to guess. Who am I? Who do others say I am?

Who does God say I am? WHO AM I? Here, we give surface answers. I am a wife, mother and writer. Most of you will mention your job or your hobby. But go a little deeper. Sometimes it is hard to look at ourselves. It is much easier to look at others and judge who they are. We don’t want to face our faults or imperfections. It is a harsh reality when we are faced with a mirror to look up and see the most judgmental person we know. It is a fact- we are hard on ourselves. We allow circumstances to define us and we hold to those as an excuse to beat ourselves up. So what defines you? Body image? Your childhood? Disease or disability? Rape? Rejection? Loss?

WHO DO OTHERS SAY I AM?

This is big! Humans have an innate need to feel accepted. We need others to think highly of us. Typically, this leads us to overcompensate. Let’s look at this on a more personal level.

You are visiting at a new church and are approached by a member right after service. How would you NOT introduce yourself?

“Hi, my name is soand-so and I scream at my kids a lot.”

“Hi, my name is soand-so and I’ve been divorced.”

“Hi, my name is soand-so and I have to take medication for depression.”

While some of these things may be true, we don’t want others to know about them. So what do we do? We overcompensate by moving toward the extreme opposite pole. We put on a mask so that others won’t see what we spend our lives desperately trying to hide.

“Hi, my name is soand-so and I never raise my voice or lose my cool. I live a perfect life, walking the straight and narrow. I don’t make mistake and I don’t screw up daily. I have no need for God’s grace because I have achieved perfection.”

Now, we know we are in a room full of sinners but because of all of the masks, we don’t know whose sin is worse so we simply try to cover ours the best. Overtime, our churches have become a home for masked men and women and the visitors who don’t feel like putting on a mask feel inadequate and scant.

And finally, WHO DOES GOD SAY I AM? This one is simple. God says we are His. His creation. His work. His joy. His daughter. We are created in His image and He sees through our mask, past our own negative thoughts of ourselves, around the opinions of others, and sees only us and who we are in Him. And beloved, He is proud!