Identity Theft

Sometimes I really hate watching TV. Sometimes I hate listening to music. Sometimes I hate going onto Facebook. Sometimes I hate reading books, and reading is my most favorite thing to do. I'm not saying that I specifically hate each and every one of those things, I'm saying that I hate doing them (i.e. watching TV, listening to music, etc.). Not because they're bad or sinful - because they're not - but because of what can come from them. Because in every book, in every song, in every show and movie and in nearly every single Facebook post, there is something to do with identity.

Have you ever noticed that you're searching for a group to belong to? For example, a person that's really athletic gets put into the "sports" group, and their identity becomes their sport. Or a guy that's artistic and dresses nice gets put into the "gay" group because he isn't interested in four-wheelin' and basketball. Or an accidentally flirty girl gets put into the "sex" group because she seems ditzy and floozy; and so on and so on. And eventually these "stereotypes" and "groups" don't become groups or stereotypes anymore, but instead they become one's identity. Kind of like how when a duck and a beaver get cozy, they aren't just a duck and a beaver anymore, they're a platypus. I'm not saying that having an identity is wrong, because our identity is what makes us who we are. But it's what your identity is in that effects the way you live.

I'm a Pastor's Kid, so a lot of people tend to stereotype me into the "Preacher's Daughter" group. In the world's view, I can either go off the deep end and be all Footloose style, or I can be that weird little girl with her forty cats that runs around her house singing "Jesus Loves Me". That's where people expect my "identity" to be. And there was a time that I believed I would be one of those two things, because sometimes when your identity is set out for you by others or what you think "suits" you, you start to believe it.

I once knew a person that was really fantastic; brilliant, even. I thought they were pretty cool, and they were. But they started getting stereotyped into this group, and eventually they decided that they actually liked that group, so that group became their identity. And let me tell you, it wasn't a good identity. It had no bragging rights; it certainly didn't sound nice, and it definitely wasn't right for them. Do you ever have problems like that? Have you put yourself in a group where your identity is something worldly? Because when that happens, your identity gets warped and gnarled. Suddenly your "identity" seems pretty ugly. Or perhaps your hobby suddenly becomes your identity; your soccer team isn't just a couple of nights of week to blow off some steam and have fun, but something you poor your soul into when you should be pouring your soul into your faith.

While having identity in worldly things is bad, there is an identity that is actually good (believe it or not!). That identity, is your identity in Christ. We aren't of this world! We are part of God's world; we are part of a great, eternal thing with a master that blazes brighter than the most magnificent star. We aren't part of this world, yet we try to force ourselves into unhealthy and unwise identities of this world. We aren't supposed to have identities in sports, jobs, people, things, ideas or culture; our identities are supposed to be in God, and God alone. 

Making up excuses yet? "But I love my job; it's what I do with my time!" "This group is just so much more accepting... I know they go against what God says, but I'd rather be with them!" "This guy is just so perfect." "Soccer and football is where I devote my time; it's just who I am." Excuses excuses! Those are hobbies, not your identities. God should be your one and only true identity and not your hobby, because through Him and only Him, are we no longer zombies walking around in an already dead world; we are renewed and brought back to life. We need to be the poison to our worldly identities, not the medicine that only makes them take over our lives more and more.

Did you know that satan could use your worldly identities? Oh yes, he's pretty clever like that! He takes things that can distract us and pull us away from God and manipulates them against us. He tries to be our identity theft, when really God should be the one stealing away our identity. He uses whatever he can get, to bring us down. He tried to use my Pastor's Kid status to either get me to go AWOL, or to get me to be a failure in my faith. But guess what? I'm not going to let him win, so neither should you! Take hold of your life and put your identity in God. Don't put your identity in something that will disappear in the next few years and mean nothing in the Kingdom of Heaven.

So what's your identity in?

"For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes." Galatians 3:26-27

Spiders

I had an exciting adventure today. What I mean by "exciting" is: absolutely terrifying, life-threatening, horrifying, and heart-stopping. What was my exciting adventure exactly? Well, let me tell you! It began with me driving to Starbucks. I was going to have a relaxing drive, full of music that made me feel like I was in an Indie Film. It was going to be simple and peaceful. Too bad it was anything but peaceful! Instead of having a nice drive, it was ruined by a spider. Yes, a spider. A stupid, little (scary) spider. In case you don't already know, spiders are my worst fear. I hate spiders more than anything else. So when this little spider crawled up on my window (right by my face, might I add), I pretty much freaked out. I screamed and tried to put quite the amount of distance between myself and this "terrifying" spider. Instead of rolling my window down or pulling over on the side of the road to get the spider out of my car like a normal person would've done, I kept driving. I thought maybe he could just stay put or move somewhere else, at least till I got to Starbucks, which was only five minutes away. But this spider had other plans. Instead of staying put like he was supposed to, he sprang at me! You can imagine my terror, I'm sure. I screamed, nearly jumped out of my seat and swerved the car. I know, I know... What was I thinking?! I could've gotten myself or someone else killed! Thankfully for me, there were no other cars on the road I was on, and also, the spider didn't land on me. Crisis avoided!

But, avoiding a spider and acting crazy isn't the moral of my story. I can't just walk away from something like that and only think to myself: "Well, next time I'll make sure to just pull over!" That's much too easy, wouldn't you agree? The moral of the story is not looking at something small, and letting it run your life. I looked at the spider and let it effect the way I drove and the way I was acting in that situation. Sometimes I think we do that in life, too. I think that something small happens - someone acts out of context, we lose our cool, our boss does something we don't approve of, our leader decides to make a choice that we don't fully agree with, or we have a small issue with the way people are doing things - and we take it to the next level. We let it affect how we act, how we appear and how we talk. We let something small take over our lives and rule the way we live.

Maybe you've had something like that happen to you before? Have you ever been in a situation that isn't very serious, but you allow it to blow out of proportion? I can assure you that it happens to all of us, and I have allowed moments that aren't very bad to get a hold of me and drag me down, even though it was really little and not all that important. Your moment that you let rule your life, is your "spider", so to speak. Instead of dragging your mind away from the situation (smacking the spider away) or asking God to help you with it (rolling your window down), you fall head first into a disaster that you helped create (swerving the car).

Did you know that God places bad things in our life sometimes, and that sometimes He also places those little insignificant moments that we sometimes blow out of proportion? Yep, sometimes that's God, and He does it for a reason. My best advice would be to look towards God in all of these times. Instead of allowing your emotions or thoughts or opinions jump out of you, turn to God. Pray that He would take hold of you and help you not allow that moment to expand into something it wasn't to begin with. Don't let satan use your emotions or words to turn your back on God and disobey Him. The Bible says,

And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful. - Colossians 3:15

Did you just read that correctly, my dear friend? It says that we need to let the peace that comes from God rule in our hearts. This means allowing God to rule over us and our hearts instead of nonsensical situations or silly moments. Not only that, but the verse calls us to be peaceful with the ones we are around. In other words, people that can sometimes help create those situations don't need to be yelled at or told how wrong they are; they need to be excepted. And finally, I think the last part of that verse is pretty self-explanatory.

Always be thankful, even for the spiders.