QUOTES AND ENCOURAGEMENT
QUOTES AND ENCOURAGEMENT
TRUTH AND IDENTITY:
Understanding who you are
While growing up (during my high school days), I struggled with inferiority complex. I felt others were better than me and this made me to seek approval with the people I spent time with. One of the things that helped me to cover up my low self esteem was my academic performance. I did very well in all my classes and so I had some people who spent time with me because they wanted to learn. This view of me started changing when I got into 10th grade. I started looking at myself differently. I started appreciating myself for who God made me to be and I also started appreciating other people for who God had created them to be. I learned that I was not the only person who had weaknesses but we all have weaknesses and this is one of the reasons we need God and one of the reasons we ought to help one another.
As I matured in my faith, I came to realize that my identity could only be found in my Creator, Jesus Christ. From that time till today I am happy to know that my identity is found in the one who cannot fail. Now I appreciate those around me even more because I realize that He made them for a purpose, which is to glorify Him. This essay is a reminder for me to remain humble as I serve others because they were created for a purpose.
This essay explains one aspect of the Christian faith. It will be an introduction for a person who has never heard of Christianity. The poem is also philosophical in nature in that it relies on a firm basis and foundation for its truth and this Truth is found in the Bible (I have another essay describing the validity of this premise).
While working through this I wrote a poem in 2006 addressing the issue of identity. I came to realize that what others thought about me was not important and all that mattered was what God thought about me. This is the basis for the following poem.
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not be intimidated or oppressed by anyone
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not be shaken or stoppable
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will never want to be pitied
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not have any reason to fear
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not want to be someone else, because God made you to be who you are
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not think of yourself being inferior to anyone else, because you are uniquely designed by God to be you.
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not consciously be jealous or envious of other people’s achievement, because God has blessed you with your own resources. Instead you will encourage other people to use their gifts
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not respond to indistinguishable insults
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will not want to be worshipped, instead you will give God the glory
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will love to serve others with your gifts (Romans 12)
WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE
You will give thanks and praises to God (Psalms 100)
It is only when you know who you are in Christ that you can serve Him with what He has given you to His glory. Find out who you are in Christ and enjoy being God’s own child and make him pleased.
If you want to know how effective something can be, do not compare it to another copy of its kind, instead it will be better to compare it with the original plan the creator of the thing had in mind.
If you want to know how effective you can be for God, do not compare yourself with other people, instead ask God to show you who He has made you to be and what He wants you to do. The answer lies in the Bible.
The answer to our quest for identity and worth is found when we come to know who we truly are, not as described by ourselves or others but as described by the one who gave us the ability to understand the meaning of worth. It is in Him, we truly come to know who we are.
God designed you for a purpose. Ask Him to guide you and show you his plan for your life. God has his stamp on you.
The reason why certain products are expensive is because of the stamp of the manufacturer. If God has his stamp on you then you are priceless and special in the sight of God. It is only in God, we can truly find our worth and identity because He made us for His glory.
There are two songs that help to explain this poem better: “Identity” by Lecrae and “There can never be a more beautiful you” by Jonny Diaz
Amos Tarfa
Servant Team President, Going Deeper International Ministries