Be.

Scripture: John 1:6-13 (CSB)

“There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light. The true light that gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.

He was in the world, and the world was created through Him, and yet the world did not recognize Him. But to all who did receive Him, He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of natural descent, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God.”

I spent my summer in Europe with ten others who deeply love Jesus. We were in a bustling city, in a completely new place with all new people and things. At home, my family and friends, familiar coffee shops and faces of locals, and fast-paced routines had been sources of comfort and shaped parts of my identity. I didn’t see this reality until my life at home was put on pause, and the Lord planted me elsewhere for a season. In this busy city, we were living in a hostel where we shared rooms and had a buddy system that kept us together at all times. As you can imagine, it was hard to find quiet places and quiet times. There was an emergency exit stairwell on one side of the hostel, with big windows overlooking parts of the city. This became a quiet place of retreat for myself and others on our team.

Something that was quickly exposed during our first few weeks overseas: I deeply, deeply craved and needed to be with God before I could do any of the work He set before us. Whether the day had been busy or slow, exciting or scary, or had been extremely difficult or absolutely incredible, I needed to be with God, resting in His love and power. I knew that no matter what was going on, I could retreat to the stairwell with my Bible, my journal, my earbuds and my Jesus playlist on Spotify (or with nothing at all) and I could talk to, listen to and praise the God who gave me life.

We are completely obsessed with asking the question, “who am I?” and we live in a “do” culture where that question is often answered by what we do and how well we do it. Being overseas exposed how much I had been unknowingly sitting in this tension. Maybe you sit in the same tension and you’re asking this big question of identity, and you’re letting the answer that our culture gives speak to your heart. Maybe you’re constantly trying to “do” before you “be”, and too much of how you see yourself and what you believe about yourself is rooted in what the world around you is saying. Thank God that He is kind enough to tell us the Truth about who we are!

“There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light. The true light that gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.” (John 1:6-8 CSB)

Witness means to see or have personal knowledge of something. This passage tells us that we are called to testify about the Light, who is King Jesus, when we ourselves witness the Light.

In Mark 3:14, Jesus is calling the apostles and the scripture says, “He appointed 12, whom He also named apostles, to be with Him…” Jesus first called His apostles to be with Him, before anything and everything else. He’s calling you and I the same way! How beautiful is it that our big, beautiful, glorious God desires an intimate and deep relationship with you and I! We were created to walk intimately with Him, and it is His first priority that you first come to know Him through a deep relationship. We become witnesses of His goodness when we walk with Him.

When we witness the Light, we then testify about the Light. There’s a saying that goes something like “you become the average of the five people you hangout with the most.” I know that I want to hangout with Jesus the most so that I can become more like Him! When we know Him and we are with Him, we become more like Him because He is just that good. When we strive to be with God before we strive to do for God, we can walk with His love overflowing into all that we do. We witness the Light and our lives are changed forever, but it doesn’t end there. We get to witness the goodness of God every single day!

There’s a song I really love by Josh Baldwin called Evidence. The chorus says this:

“I see the evidence of your goodness

All over my life, all over my life

I see Your promises in fulfillment

All over my life, all over my life”

His goodness is everywhere. He gives us breath in our lungs, His living Word that we can read anytime, He listens to our prayers, and He is ever present. The King of the world rescued you, knows you, listens to you, sustains you and we get to see the evidence of His goodness everywhere, all the time. This leaves me in complete awe.

“But to all who did receive Him, He gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in His name…” (John 1:12 CSB)

Woah. When we believe in Jesus as our Savior, we are given the right to be children of God. He brings us from death to life - this is the greatest gift that we could ever receive, and it becomes our very identity. We get to be children of the Creator of the world, and this is a reason to REJOICE and CELEBRATE! We are invited into the grand story of God’s Kingdom, and our very existence becomes a testimony. When you and I live into this identity as children of the King, He is glorified and His name is praised!

Psalm 8:3-4 says, “When I observe your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you set in place, what is a human being that you remember him, a son of man [or mere mortal] that you look after him?”

Our culture gives us names and labels and titles. Maybe you’re a student, a wife, a mom, a friend, an athlete, an artist, or many other amazing things. Or maybe, you have labels that have kept you from the freedom you have in Christ. Wherever you are at and however you are feeling, everything you root your identity in apart from God completely pales in comparison to who God - the King of the World, our Creator, who knows you deeply - says you are in Christ Jesus. Every other identity apart will fall away and fall short. He tells us the truth about who we are when we are with Him.

You and I can wake up every day, seeking to witness and experience for ourselves the Light that Jesus Christ is. We are children of God, witnessing and then testifying of His goodness daily. Let this be the answer whenever you ask yourself the question “who am I?”