“Raise your hand if you’re Irish!” Growing up my dad would say this as we were driving through Irish town in upstate NY.
After he would say that three hands would shoot up. My dad’s, my brother’s and mine. My mom, who is not Irish, would just roll her eyes and smile and sigh at my dad, never being able to raise her hand.
One day, my brother noticed that she did not raise her hand, and told her to raise her hand. She told him that she couldn’t because she wasn’t Irish. She tried her best to explain to Kevin, who was very little at the time, that we were Irish because daddy was Irish. She wasn’t Irish, but she was Norwegian. We were also Norwegian like her, and daddy wasn’t.
My brother still did not understand this concept and immediately burst into tears. He was hysterical and cried, “Mom, I want to be what you are…”
I love this story because it reminds me how my brother sought to find his identity in what our mom was.
Aren’t we like that too? We find these “things” whatever they may be, and we turn to them and ask them to define us. Some may put their identity in their profession. When they are doing well in their work they feel successful, when things are not going so well, they feel like a failure. Some may put their identity in their children, maybe in their material possessions. We all seek to be identified in some way.
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Ephesians 2:10 (NIV) tells us, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
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I love this verse because it tells me who I am, where I come from, and what I am supposed to do. I am God’s handiwork, I am created in Christ Jesus, and I am to do His good works, which He has prepared in advance for me to do. I cannot think of placing my identity in something better than this!
When we choose to set our identity set in Christ, we are choosing to be like Him. We are making the decision to live like Him, act like Him and speak like Him. As Christians we should strive to have our identity be in Christ. When people see us, we should want the first thing that they see to be Christ in us.
It’s hard not to get caught up in the worldly things of today. Many things come at us everyday asking us to place our identity in it. We must remember what Christ tells us in Colossians 3:2 (NIV), “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” We must remember to focus on eternal things, which is why it is so important that our identity be firmly planted in Christ.
Just as my younger brother cried out to my mom, “I want to be what you are…” we should also cry out to God wanting to be more like Him.
By: Kirsten Wilson
Photo Credit: WeHeartIt
This is beautiful. Thanks, Kirsten. Lots for us to ponder today.
So true. This applies to being a momma too. My boys are always watching and because they are still little they are like your brother. . wanting to be what Mommy “is”, and I need to point them to Christ . .I can’t do that if my actions and words look completely different than His.
I am always going to mess up, but I need to admit it to them and help them see that I am walking with Him and when I stumble He picks me up. I think about this all the time.
Thanks for sharing this. Have a beautiful weekend sweet girl!
Beautiful. My prayer has been that people see Christ in me first, unfortunately it doesn’t always happen but He always gives us another chance.
Beautiful. 🙂
Myself and my husband are literally discussing similar right now LOL. We often talk of asking Jesus in to our hearts and the image is almost like He is a tiny man who is hiding in your heart…like He’s in you rather than you in Him(identity-wise(…it can transpire in to us seeing Him as little whern we view it this way!
I love this reminder of us being in Him and we should be what he is, such a cute story but with a great message.
BTW I’m raising my hands cause I’m Irish 😉 xxx
This is so precious – and really resonates with me –
Oh, Lord, Yes! I want to be what You are…!
thanks so much, Kirsten.
(PS – I’m raising my Irish hand too…)
Kristen,
Yes, I have been guilty too many times of finding my worth through my perceived achievement and successes. Honestly, it probably has only been in the last few years that I am able to rest in who I am and who He created me to be.
This is a beautiful reminder. Thank you.
Very good reminder! Our world finds value in achievement, success, accomplishment, when the truth is that we can only find value in Christ alone. I love the thought that God created us to do good works, which He has prepared for each of us specifically. I hope to live this out each day and not view myself the way the world would.
I LOVE this. So many times we put our focus on the wrong things and become of this world. I love that you point out that it is necessary that we work to find ourselves trying to be more like Christ. Thanks!