Do you ever struggle with insecurity?
Ever wonder who you are?
Ever feel crushed because other people react negatively to you?
Ever feel trapped in needing other people’s approval?
I can struggle a lot with looking to other people’s reactions for my identity, and it’s something God has been speaking into in my life.
Can you think of a time when other people’s words had you floored? It happens to me quite often, because I’m pretty sensitive.
I remember one day a while ago when I was on public transport, on my way home from a session in the recording studio. I had poured my heart out in the studio, and was drained and exhausted. I was coming home on the train, and ended up having train problems. I asked someone for help, and he was impatient and snappy. I guess he was having a bad day, and probably didn’t mean anything by it (Lord, bless him today), but I had nothing left after my session in the studio, and his tone cut so deeply. I didn’t react outwardly. I got the answer I needed and walked away, but I admit that I shed a few secret, exhausted tears, and had to lean on the Lord for strength to get home.
Have you ever had a day like that?
I am a child of God through Christ. God made me. I belong to Him. Trusting in Jesus as my Saviour and following Him as my Lord (you can find out more about what that means here), I am a secure, forgiven, loved child of God.
Other people’s reactions do not define who I am. And looking to them for my identity is a form of idolatry anyway, because only God gets to be God in my life.
‘”I, even I, am He who comforts you.
Who are you that you should be afraid
Of a man who will die,
And of the son of a man who will be made like grass?”‘
Isaiah 51:12
You know, when I think about it now, I bet God’s heart towards me in that moment was full of such mercy and compassion. Maybe those words were even an arrow from the enemy to discourage me after making songs. And the man’s reaction was irrelevant. God treasured me in that moment, even if I was a bother to a guy in a station. And, in Christ, He still does!
The other person may be speaking from their own pain. They may be tired, or grumpy. They may not even realise how I am hearing their words. And the Father is the One Who tells me who I am.
That doesn’t mean other people can’t speak into my life, but it does mean that I don’t need to be crushed when they react in ways that are not in line with my Father’s heart.
If I could hear the Father’s heart over me in His Son, I would hear a song of loving affirmation.
And the more I soak in His incredible love for me, the more free I will feel to offer the love others need, from a position of security and freedom in Him.
I wrote the song ‘Mine’ from a process of working some of these through. It’s something I still need to remember. It’s not something that’s automatic in me yet. But my reactions are slowly changing as I remember. My Creator is the One Who says I am. Other people’s words and reactions do not change that. I am His, secure in Christ. And I pray that the words encourage others who need them, too.
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You can read a longer devotional about standing in identity in Christ in the free devotional ebook I made for the girl who longs to know she is loved. I hope it blesses you!
Listen to Songs on the Player Below…
And you can sample the song ‘Mine’ (as well as the other songs on my new album) using the Bandcamp player below (‘Mine’ is number 8). (If you are reading this by email, you will need to click on the actual blog page to listen).
May the Lord bless and encourage you today!
God bless you abundantly!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Caroline Abblitt 