Identity - Part 1 (Foundations)

As part of the Spire summer school tour this year one of the topics that we will be looking at is identity. Here is part one of our on-line series that explores identity.

Do you remember the ‘I am' Orange advertising campaign of last year? I remember seeing the round the world cyclist record holder Mark Beaumont in one advert, and the famous England rugby player Johnny Wilkinson. Or how about Vicky and the witch?! (Check out the links at the bottom of the page!) The most well known was the unknown actor who led us through the significant relationships in his life, such as, ‘I am my best friend Mike.' The advert ended with ‘I am who I am because of everyone.' These adverts would have us believe that not only can Orange help us make and maintain more significant relationships in our life, but that it is through these relationships that we find out and become who we are.

The summer Spire programme is all about us becoming the people we were created to be, dreaming big dreams, aiming high for God. But to reach higher our foundations must be firm and deep. Think of a skyscraper's foundations. The largest foundations in the world are underneath the Petronas Towers in Malaysia. The Towers are 452 metres high and the foundations are an amazing 120 metres deep. Finding out and understanding who we are...our identity....is a crucial part of creating a firm foundation. Other people certainly play a part in this, but understanding, believing and living out our Christian identity is an essential part of dreaming big for God. Take a look at this quote:

Understanding your identity in Christ is absolutely essential to your success at living a Christian life. No person can consistently behave in a way that's inconsistent with the way he perceives himself. If you think you are a nobody, you'll probably live like a nobody. But if you see yourself as a child of God who is spiritually alive in Christ you'll begin to live in victory and freedom as He lived. Next to a knowledge of God, a knowledge of who you are is by far the most important truth you can possess.

(Neil T Anderson; Stomping Out The Darkness' )

During the summer - in cell groups or at summer schools - we will be looking at the fantastic book of Esther. If anyone had reason for an identity crisis then Esther did! Esther cruelly lost both her parents as a young child and was bought up by an older cousin. She was an exile....that is, she, along with many other Jews, had been violently forced out of her own home country and had to settle in Persia. Here she was a foreigner living in a strange land with different customs, religion and language. Then she was forcibly taken to the royal palace where she could tell no-one of her background or Jewish identity. Whatever the outcome of her meeting with the King, it was certain she would spend the rest of her life in the King's harem. Yet throughout all this upheaval in her young life it seems that Esther's foundations were secure and deep. When the opportunity came for her to do something amazing for God (which we all dream about, don't we!?), she was strong and secure enough in her identity to face fear, risk failure and fight for her God and her nation. The rest, as they say....is history!

Throughout our lives we have many influences trying to tell us who we are or should be. The people around us give us labels. The systems we come under put us in boxes. The TV we watch, the magazines we read, even the shopping malls we frequent all tell us what stuff we should buy, what we should wear, what we should look like for maximum enjoyment of life. Designing our profiles on internet social networking sites mean we can create ourselves into whoever we want to be. It has become harder than ever to dig into the real truths of our identity as Christians and as human beings. But dig we must, dig deep and dig hard, if we are to 'Spire to be more, do more and dream more for God!

Lots of people have made spoof videos of the Orange ‘I am' adverts. It has got me wondering what would ‘I am who I am because of Jesus' look like? What do you think of the following...

‘I am meant to be, not a result of chance.'

‘I am chosen and valued, just as I am.'

‘I am holy, despite my mistakes.'

‘I am part of something and someone bigger.'

‘I am created...made....designed....fashioned, with care and creativity, to reflect God and his Son.'

‘I am, for eternity.'

Have a think for yourself, look at your own life and those around you, and come up with your own ‘I am....' ideas. And if any of you creative types out there fancy making a video clip do send in the link! We at ALOVE UK would love to hear and see your thoughts!

Links

I am everyone http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fI_cRXoBaoY

I am Mark Beaumont http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roRw5TS9VlE

I am who I am because of Vicky http://thefeed.orange.co.uk/2009/02/05/new-orange-wednesdays-advert-exclusive/

I am a smile when you least expect it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ80FhhUooU