We long to be defined.
For some it’s the latest clothing or fashion styles. For others, it’s being the first in line at your local coffee house. A select few find their identity in achievement and status (oh wait that’s everyone). Perhaps straight A’s, perfect attendance to Chargers games (hey I live in San Diego now), climbing the ladder at work, or bowling is your thing.
I remember growing up I was the movie man (and I do mean THE movie man). If you wanted to know something about movies, I had the answers. I collected movies, made movies, ate movies, drank movies. Ask anyone who knew me to describe me and one of the first things that would come to their minds (besides my ravenous good looks) was my knowledge and passion for film. I loved being “that guy.” I loved being the person who could point people the “right way” with movies (ask my wife and she will tell you that I am still like that). But something was certainly missing in me. I could never see enough movies or learn enough about film. There would always be one more to see. There was an unrelenting inner competition within me that wanted to outdo everyone else who thought they knew movies. This was my definition, and remained so until after several years of following Jesus.
It was a slow process, but God slowly began showing me that I was so much more than just “the movie man.”
I was an object of God’s love.
Me. Not the just the perfect student behind me or football star to the left. But me. Andy-the kid who was teased on the playground in kindergarten and had his underwear thrown around the gym locker room in middle school. Me.
People are starved for significance. We all want meaning. We want identity; a definition for ourselves. The cross of Christ is not just a story about a nice man who was born, taught a little, and then died. It is about God Himself chasing after a creation that left Him. It is about redeeming something that was lost. It is all at once about how much God hates sin, but loves people. Jesus and his cross are instruments for forgiveness of the crap we have done, and an invitation to true identity as Children of God.
True meaning IS being God’s child and living a life of total dependence on the Father, both for salvation and our daily existence. True identity is found in Jesus Christ. This is true whether we are pastors, teachers, musicians, astronauts, college students, youth workers, children abandoned by parents, girls with abusive pasts, drug addicts, recovering drug addicts, alcoholics, recovering alcoholics, mathematicians, recovering mathematician, basket-ball stars, or track practice dropouts.
If you are searching for identity, don’t settle for anything less than meaning in Christ. If you have this meaning, don’t forget it or substitute it for a false thrill. He is worth too much for that. So are you.
Andy
Andy
“How great is the love that the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called Children of God! And that is what we are!” 1 John 3:1
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