Do you know who you are? Kiss Insecurity Goodbye

Do you know who you are? This identity question sounds relatively simple, but you’d be surprised about the response people share. When asked, I bet you usually explain what you do and most likely ramble off a list of things, such as your physical description, accomplishments, where you’re from, or career.

Running down your resume is cool if you’re auditioning for an acting role or a job interview, but this question isn’t related to getting a gig—it goes beneath the superficial.

Why is this question do you know who you are so critical? Because you discover your reason for existence and your life purpose only by knowing and understanding why God created you, how you are to relate to Him, why Jesus had to die for your sins, and how you are to live out your life here on earth. Knowing who you are is deeper than your do, we want to unlock our WHO!

There is no way to live this life, as intended, outside of fellowship with the God that created you. Only He knows your reason for existence.

And let’s be clear. When I refer to God, I am not referring to what or who you want your god to be. I’m referring to God who’s “I Am that I Am.” You’ll remain lost if you want to know your identity based on your own beliefs and feelings. Please ask the Holy Spirit to guide you into all truth.

 

MY CONFUSION ABOUT MY IDENTITY

From a young age, I sensed that God had something planned for my life, but like most Believers, I had no clue about what it was or who I was. Yes, I knew I was George, and Lynette’s daughter, born and raised in Detroit, believed in Jesus, and was aware of many of my gifts early on, but that was about it.

I didn’t know God’s love had anything to do with my identity. I didn’t grasp the fullness of relating to Him, nor did I know about the layers of treasure buried beneath Jesus’ death and blood on the cross and His bodily resurrection. And I certainly didn’t know many of His attributes, or about this plan, He has for my life.

Throughout my twenties, I thought God was mad at me whenever I sinned. My consciousness was always heavy when I’d knowingly sinned. After confessing and repenting of my wrongs, I’d still be ashamed and full of guilt for months after. I didn’t understand verses like Romans 8:1 and 1 John 1:9. I spent most of my time reading the New Testament, but didn’t know how to connect the story through the Old Testament Scriptures.

Therefore, I often believed some of what I read in the Bible sounded contradictory, and my natural mind went back and forth. I then took what I couldn’t understand and settled for what I could understand.

My early years as a believer were full of patched-up spiritual puzzle pieces.

Bible studies did help tremendously with life issues, but I still had questions about the condition of my soul, and I always felt God was displeased with me.

 

PIN ME:

THE SEASON OF LIFE TRANSFORMATION

Soulful, then one day it happened!

In my early thirties, my mind began to transform. The transformation came about when I started to spend more time in fellowship with God. The romantic relationship (quite an unhealthy one) I was in at the time kept me seeking God’s face. The more I sought Him out, the Holy Spirit began to show me many mysteries of the Bible, which made me take a long look at myself.

The Bible was no longer “a book” I took to church on Sundays or opened to read Genesis, Psalms, Proverbs, and then the New Testament (all but Revelation). The Bible started to change me from the inside out. The Words are living and active (Hebrews 4:12).

The Word filled me with the Living Water promised to the lady at the well and the food I hungered for regularly. I started asking God for help interpreting the scriptures. In my Tanya voice, I would read a passage and say, “God, I don’t understand this at all. What does that mean?”

I also attended a noontime Bible study every Wednesday at a church in Alpharetta, GA, near my then job at Grainger. This class was LIT, it was everythingggggg y’all, I loved the teaching. The fiya teaching was everything I was missing. It was very interactive and took us through the Bible instead of just scriptures here and there. I started the class in the NT (New Testament) and worked my way toward the end (obviously, this took years).

 

 

And it also didn’t hurt that I could pick up the phone and ask my dad (Minister George Quinn) tons of questions, which I’m sure he was more than delighted to answer (smile)!

The class led me to desire God more, and to this day I still thirst after His righteousness. Although the identity piece hadn’t fully registered during this time, the fact that I was growing spiritually by God’s standard was rewarding. I no longer viewed success in the way that the world did, and you shouldn’t either.

I can honestly say my walk started reaching new heights when I realized that I loved and knew the God of the Bible. The Creator of all. The King of all kings. It was exciting when I understood who and what LaTanya meant to God. God blew me away—and I still am!

Unfortunately, that romantic relationship that pushed me toward God became a short-lived marriage that ended in a divorce. Of course, the marriage hindered my growth tremendously. God couldn’t do full work in me until I fully surrendered and walked away from that situation. I don’t condone divorce, but there are Biblical reasons for them.

ONLY GOD CAN UNVEIL YOUR IDENTITY

To know who you are, we have to know your history, not just history about your race (which is still essential), but your spiritual history. You need to know about Israel, Gentiles, and the Old Testament. When this world passes away, your soul and spirit will live.

Satan, the accuser of the brethren, works non-stop to keep you from knowing your identity. Nonetheless, after learning more and more about who you are to God—you’ll see why.

You are to believe who God says you are—this is how you must describe yourself from now on. You must see yourself from His view and God’s eye view vantage. I encourage you to read John’s gospel to start your journey.

 

John 8:31 NIV says, …”If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”

 

Truth cracks the code to get to the mind of Christ. This passage has come to life for many Christians as there are countless beautiful testimonies about how God’s truth has set them free. Romans 5-8 will help you tremendously and confirm your identity and salvation.

God Desires a Relationship If You:

• Were adopted
• Were raised in a single-parent home
• Don’t know who your parents are
• Grew up on the wrong side of the tracks
• Were abused and molested
• Feel abandoned
• Struggling with your sexual identity
• Falsely accused of something you didn’t do
• Feel you no longer want to live
• Committed a crime

…your soul can heal and overcome all the odds you believed were stacked against you because Jesus Christ is Lord! You can kiss insecurity goodbye.

A warped identity leaves you looking for love and solutions in all the wrong places. It would be easy for one to believe that getting married or having a baby will solve their problems and fill the void. Therefore, some of us take on whatever toxic or unhealthy situation that comes our way for the sake of not being alone. This need of wanting to be accepted also causes many to join cults, gangs, or keep company with bad influences.

 

And us Christians still fight to fit in or be accepted by worldly people because we don’t want to appear uncool. Then instead of seeking after God, we seek after money and material things, hoping that they will make the pain go away—but they don’t.

When all is said and done, when you lie down in the quiet of the night, you are still struggling with the same thing—it hasn’t gone away, no matter how you try to suppress it. Do you know why? Because it’s a soul issue. When you get saved, your soul (mind, will, and emotions) still must be renewed. You also submit your temple to God as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1-2).

Soulful, there is a war waging in your heart and soul internally, and it’s all because you don’t know who you are. Your life choices, moral compass, and belief system saturate your limiting-beliefs. If you believe you aren’t good enough, you will display this in your actions across the board—what’s in you, bad or good, will come out.

 

Romans 5:6-9 NIV says, You see at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him.

 

This scripture explains how God does not see a person that has not accepted or believed in His Son the way He sees someone that has. He considers a sinner to be spiritually dead (separated from God) and in need of a Savior. Father sees the believer (who was once unrighteous) as spiritually alive in Christ. He hates sin so much that He won’t intermingle with it. So yet while we were still sinners, destined for hell, Christ died for us!

PIN ME:

Contrary to what people “think” the only way you can approach His throne in boldness with prayer and thanksgiving, is if you believe and accept His only begotten Son Jesus. The only way to the Father is through the Son—there is no other way!

If you believe you’ve been cleansed in the blood and redeemed, the Father now sees life and righteousness when He views you instead of death. Your right standing is enormous, my friend. The blood of Jesus making you righteous should change the way you see yourself drastically, especially if God does. Yes, God hates all ongoing sin (they are to be confessed and repented of immediately) as your very flesh still wreaks of the sin nature, but know the SIN that separated us eternally from God is forgiven. You are now in right standing through Jesus. There is, therefore now no condemnation (Romans 8:1).

Because of the blood transaction, repentance, and faith in Christ—you belong to God’s family. You are His loving son or daughter. You are a part of a plan more significant than you. You’ve been accepted into a royal family and are now privileged, loved, blessed, and fruitful.

He erased all of the damage and hurt that anyone and every sin has ever bought upon your life. You are rescued from them eternally. Because of who you are and Who you belong to, you should be walking in humility and self-assurance. You no longer need to hide behind the wall of shame for anything you have done or been through—kiss insecurity goodbye.

Live from your true identity as you are the light and salt. Once you grow into the person you were born to be, you will no longer just exist—you can live a life full of hope because your Father will take care of you.

Soul Actions:

Thank the Lord for all He has done for you. He is worthy to be praised for showering all of these blessings upon you.

Spend time and pray to Him. Get in His presence and draw near to him. This will erase insecurity as you find security in Him.

Read your word daily to draw more wisdom about God. This will expand your knowledge and reverence of Him.

If this writing has been a blessing to you, please share it with two friends. Again, thank you for reading. May God continue to bless you and may His grace abound even more.