Our StoryIn a world of labels, brands, logos, denominations, medical diagnosis with labels such as diabetic, obese, cancer patient, cancer survivor, heart patient, and many other cultural label issues, it is very easy to lose sight or be distracted from the number one question, “who does God say I am?
Why I think answering this question is so important is the expected or anticipated blessings, rights, privileges, values and personality expressions that come with who I am. When answering the question of who am I, we can be glad we are not defined by what others say who I am… but who God says I am.
I remember a very successful pastor that lived with a tormenting thought from being told frequently as a child by his father that he would grow up to be a nobody. And even with all the success of pastoring a megachurch with thousands of attendees, he wrestled with the words, “you are and will be a nobody.” He never fully found the comfort and joy of who God said he was.
Many have accepted labels that attempt to define them and act out the acceptance of that label with the expected behavior. That is what man does. Has always done. You’re short, tall, fat, skinny, smart, dumb, you’re beautiful, etc. That is why branding is so powerful in commerce today. We identify with the voice and look of the brand. It is also why medical diagnosis is so powerful in that it gives evidence for empowerment to behaviors by both the patient and the practitioner. (Hang with me here as I know I am entering an area where it is easy to be misunderstood but also if understood, it will set you free to expect God-given blessings of wellness with vitality and purpose for your life!)
To really understand this question of who does God say I am and be free to live and behave accordingly, there is only one reference point for me to go as a historical testament and that is the scriptures. In 1 Thessalonians 5:23 it says,
“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely and may your whole spirit, soul, and body!”
I stop there to illuminate the point of how God sees us. God sees each of us as a human being with spirit, soul, and body! It is why at TriVita we talk about physical, emotional and spiritual wellness!
When we see ourselves as God sees us (as body, soul and spirit beings), we can better understand what God says about us. As it is such a contrast to a world that is two dimensional in almost every way. Rarely in the medical world of evidence-based medicine will there be an attempt to diagnosis your spiritual life. Yet there is evidence that spiritual life plays a significant role in both the physical and mental/emotional (soul) health. So what God says about you is important to your wellness. We are whole people, and as we renew our minds to the creation we are of God, and what he says about us, our choices in life and outcomes take on greater wellness and purpose. If you only see yourself with whatever circumstance or condition that is prevalent in your life, you will act out that behavior and will miss the awesome potential of who God says you are and act accordingly to receive the rights, privileges, and freedoms as an heir of God.
If you were to take your daily routines in life that dictate your behavior, what would be the most prominent influencer? What God says about you, what you say (self-talk), or others say about you. It is obvious that without a guide for our minds, it will be what we hear from our inner voice and the voices of others.
Yet the scriptures say in Romans 12:2,
“And do not be conformed to this world but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
I would encourage you to simply accept as a starting point, what the will of God towards you is defined by what the Words of God in scripture say about you.
In Genesis1:27-28,
“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, be fruitful and multiply!”
This is a spoken word of how God feels about His human creation! Words of blessing!
In Psalms 139:14 it says,
“I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made! Marvelous are your works.” Verse 17, “How precious also are Your thoughts to me O God.”
Psalms 8:4,
“What is man that You are mindful of him?” Verse 5-6, “For you have made him a little lower than the angels, and you crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands!”
It is even more clearly defined and illuminated in I Cor. 6:19,
“Do you not know your body is the temple of the holy spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit which
God’s desire towards us in blessing and living in and through us is amazing. The only thing that separates us from the greater manifestation of His will towards us are the voices that have the greatest influence on how we think of ourselves and act out day to day.
I would encourage you to daily pray this prayer as your voice of influence to bring greater wellness, glory, and blessings into your life. “Today I choose to believe I am who God says I am… I am chosen to be YOUR temple on earth, to glorify YOU in my body. I am empowered by YOUR spirit that lives in me. I am filled with YOUR love that flows freely from me. I am blessed with all spiritual blessings. I am and will be, who YOU say I am!”
