By Kristin Wyse
GCU Office of Student Care
#Askingforafriend
Who am I?
It’s a question we all seem to ask ourselves sometimes. Some things may have shaken our previous beliefs, or some people may have eroded or inaccurately mirrored our worth and value as a person.
Thankfully, we’re not alone when we ponder this. But, unfortunately, I think that we can be misled and misinformed about where our value comes from.
Typically, we have grown up understanding that WHO we are comes from WHAT we do. We develop our identity based on how well we do things. Or in a lot of cases, how well we don’t do things. Our critical voice of shame, or the voices of others, tell us in some way that we can never be good enough.
And if our identity is based on external talents, behaviors, achievements and successes, our identity is going to be riding a roller-coaster of doubt, shame and fear, leading to disconnection within our relationships.
So it is critical to remember that our identity and who we are is ONLY based on who we were created to be internally, not externally. It’s very similar to the man who built his house on the sand versus the rock.
Our internal view of ourselves is built on THE rock and who He created us to be. God created us uniquely and wonderfully. He reverently knit us together. He knew us even before He formed us. We were created for a purpose and with a purpose. We were created to have a relationship with Him, the God of the universe.
We must be important, then, if He created us with the desire to have a relationship with us. That identity cannot be shaken and will stand firm, even against the storms of our own voice of shame or others’.
Here are some verses that tell us exactly who we are internally. Remember, there is nothing that we can do to make Him love us more, and there is nothing that we can do to make Him love us less. Let us constantly remind each other that we are more than enough because WE ARE.
ACCEPTED |
Romans 5:8, 15:7, Ephesians 2:4-5 |
A PROCESS |
Philippians 1:6 |
BEAUTIFUL |
2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:10, 1 Peter 3:3-4 |
CARED FOR |
Matthew 11:28, 1 Peter 5:7 |
CHOSEN |
John 15:16, Ephesians 1:3-4, 1 Peter 2:9 |
COURAGEOUS |
1 Timothy 1:7 |
EQUAL |
Romans 2:11, Galatians 3:28 |
FORGIVEN |
Psalm 103:12, Isaiah 43:25 |
HIS CHILD |
Isaiah 43:1, John 1:12, 1 John 3:1 |
HIS IMAGE |
Genesis 1:27, Colossians 3:10 |
HIS WORKMANSHIP |
Psalm 139:13, Ephesians 2:10 |
IMPORTANT |
Philippians 4:6, 1 Peter 2:9 |
KNOWN |
Jeremiah 1:5, 1 Corinthians 13:12 |
LOVED |
Jeremiah 31:3, Ephesians 3:17-19, 1 John 4:19 |
NEEDED |
Romans 12:4-5, 1 Corinthians 12:27 |
NOT ALONE |
Deuteronomy 31:6,8, Isaiah 41:10, Matthew 28:20 |
PRECIOUS |
1 Corinthians 6:20 |
PROTECTED |
Psalm 121:3, Romans 8:31, 8:38-39 |
PURPOSED |
Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28, Ephesians 2:10 |
STRONG |
Romans 8:37, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, Philippians 4:13 |
WORTHY |
Zephaniah 3:17, 1 Corinthians 6:20 |
VALUED |
Matthew 6:26-30 |