The Importance of Being...Me

Did you grow up wishing you were different than you are?  Who among us hasn’t desired to be more like someone else at some point?  To be better looking, to be smarter, to be more outgoing, to be better at _______ - you can fill in the blank.

The problem is especially troubling when it happens in the life of a follower of Jesus.  You see, while we may accept that God made us like we are with certain unchangeables - where and when we were born, who are parents are, our genetic makeup – when we were RE-BORN we expected more!  How can it be that after plodding through life, pursued by the Holy Spirit, and finally yielding my will to God’s through faith, that I still have some of the same foibles and failings that I had before?

The catch here is that the Holy Spirit has given me (and you) the perfect gift, designed and determined by God before the beginning of the world to just fit in the package he was going to create!  (Romans 12:3-8)  Peter was a street-smart fisherman who was always living life at the edge and God gifted him to share his faith with the same “in-your-face” attitude.  After following Jesus, he didn’t magically transform into someone else – he just had to keep being Peter with supernatural power to change lives. 

John was a successful businessman with a conscience, his sensitivities shaped no doubt by his overbearing parents.  His gift?  The ability to see the deep needs in others and make an eternal difference in their lives.  I’m sure John wasn’t always happy about the unchangeables of his youth, but as an adult believer they gave him context for what God wanted to do through him.

How has God made you?  Which of your life’s unchangeables are you still fighting?  And which other follower of Christ would you prefer to be like IF God allowed you to veto the gift He gave you for a different one?  The Greeks had a word for those who would prefer that others see them differently.  It was related to the actors on the stage who used masks to hide who they really were so they could be seen as someone else.  The word: hupokrites.  In case you can’t see the point since the letters look a bit different in English, it’s the word “hypocrite”.

Believe in the supernatural power of God and His wisdom in making you just like you are.  Trust His gifts to you by embracing them for His glory.  (1 Peter 4:10)  If you’re not sure WHO you are in Christ, find someone who knows Jesus and ask them to help you on your journey….

Blessings,

Jacob