Our youngest son is an Electrical Engineer. He designs the electrical systems for large projects, manufacturing companies, various industries, etc. Some plans require him to spend days and even weeks calculating and mulling over every aspect from lighting, huge motors, generators, coolers, and anything that operates by electricity from the largest to the smallest. I asked him how he would feel if a construction worker changed the design and did it his way. His answer, well, let’s just say I wouldn’t want to be that employee. Now consider of how God must feel when we change His design for us into something we want.
God designed and created humanity in His image. Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness” . . . God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Gen1:26, 27). Of course, Adam and Eve tried altering that design. God also made each man or woman unique and no two people are exactly alike. Even identical twins, have differences. An estimated 7.7-billion people populate the earth. Every human differs down to his or her fingerprints. The Lord enjoys variety in contrast with culture. “Traditional societies tend to reward conformity rather than innovation. There is safety in following the traditional path even though it may not lead to satisfactory solutions” (Unknown). The world puts forth constant efforts to mold us into its image. Do not be conformed to this world (Rom 12:2). That warning from Paul implies it is going to be a struggle to become the individual God created us to be. Yet, he also told us the how to succeed, be transformed by the renewing of your mind (v2b).
Before entering full-time ministry, I maintained the two-way radio system at Shaw Air Force Base. ‘A not so bright soldier’ decided that equipment would operate more efficient if someone changed the source of the electrical outlets to 220 volts instead of 120 volts. With no one’s approval, he made this change. You can only imagine the mass damage across the base. I doubt he succeeded in a military career. God, the original engineer, designed us so His Kingdom would operate at peak efficiency. He created us a specific gender, assigned us a level of intelligence, a certain personality, gave us natural talents, and formed us for a distinct purpose in life. He further gives us spiritual gifts when we receive Christ. Only in Him, do we find the answers to the age-old philosophy questions: Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going?
Identity Crisis has developed into a major issue today with children, teenagers, and adults not knowing or never accepting the person God made them. Society exacerbates the problem by increasingly pushing God out of the picture. By age four, children begin realizing their thoughts, gender, and abilities differ from those around them. As they grow, they search for their identity from mother, father, or most important individual in their life. However, one in three children grows up without a father in the home. Mom may be absent because she is trying to support the family. Without a functional family unit and knowledge of God, they can look in all the wrong places. People brought up in this kind of setting, receive Christ, come to the church, and bring a host of distorted views about who they are and know nothing about what they can become in Christ.
This describes me in my early twenties when I committed my life to Christ and has been a lifelong challenge. Thank the Lord for my pastor/mentor laying a solid foundation in me. But being ignorant of the Bible, I listened to Christian ministers and teachers who tried making me into what they thought I should be and not what God had designed. Only through learning the Word with the guidance of the Holy Spirit have I developed into the person He created. The second step [first below] to becoming effective in the Kingdom of God is a desire to know who He designed you to be and a willingness to change. Does that eliminate our quarks and flaws? No, but when we give ourselves completely to Christ, the Holy Spirit transforms us by renewing our mind. My weaknesses become His business, and He will take care of them—changing them or perfecting His power in my weakness (2Co 12:9).
The first step is stop trying to be someone you aren’t. Clean out your closets and thrown away the people pleasing masks you wear. Someone said, “Be yourself, everyone else is taken”. The noted teacher Howard G. Hendricks wrote, “There was no identity crisis in the life of Jesus Christ. He knew who He was. He knew where He had come from, and why he was here. And he knew where He was going. And when you are that liberated, then you can serve.” Always keep in mind that God knew what He was doing when He designed and created you. He is for you. If God is for us, who is against us (Rom 8:31)? He is always with you. I am with you always, even to the end of the age (Matt 28:20). God made you for a reason. For we are his creative work, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we can do them (Eph 2:10 NET).
Sustaining Word for the Week: Let the Holy Spirit renew your mind. Become the individual He engineered.