We likely have all received comments that live in our head “rent-free”. Some of them are praises and validations of our accomplishments, appearance, or personality. While others are painful reminders of ways we are unsatisfactory in the eyes of people or maybe even ourselves.
These opinions take up a great deal of our attention and become the motivation that drives us to action. It’s a sticky road after that. We seem to forget who we are and, more importantly, who God is, as we work to please humans.
But men and women are fickle and their opinions are informed by things that are fleeting. As humans, we are plagued by false conclusions about ourselves, others, and life in this world. Thankfully, for those who have committed their lives to Jesus, we are being redeemed and made holy by the power of the Spirit. This includes our minds. Our minds are renewed as we spend time in the presence of Christ and pray for His mind, shaped and molded by His character and His ways (Romans 12:2, 1 Corinthians 2:10-16).
But even in this transformative process we aren’t God.
There is no other that can rival His perfection and holiness. His character is consistent, and unchanging. He is flawless in His judgment and pronouncements, qualifying God alone to bestow our identities on us –
Redeemed. Co-heirs with Christ. Royal priesthood. Children of God. Blessed. Forgiven. He is the Creator calling us His very good creation from the very beginning in Genesis 1.
When we allow the opinions of creation to dictate our state of being and our behavior toward others, we become people who strive for power, money, and notoriety to gain acceptance and hollow praise. These opinions, both of adoration and of destruction, ultimately crush us by their weight. We become people untrustworthy and unstable as we rotate our identity to suit the crowd.
When we are not rooted in the identity given by God, we forsake the things of God.
However, God has never asked us to earn or strive for His acceptance. Only to recognize our great need for him and then choose to simply be with Him. His opinion of us has already been written and will not be altered. When we allow the God of the Universe to inform our minds, hearts, and character instead of the opinions of others, we will thrive.
In order to thrive though, we must see God for who He is, Lord over all, including the thoughts we have toward ourselves. We must dig into His Word and ask Him to reveal His glory. It is then that we can accurately assess who we are and accept what He has called us to be.