Identity Crisis

“To be, or not to be, that is the question.”  To have the answer is to know the meaning of the question.  Is this about whether to go on living, or is it about continuing to be who/what I am?  Here’s another consideration:  “What’s this I hear about ‘identity theft’?  I think my identity has been stolen because I don’t know who I am.  Please, someone, anyone – help me find my identity!” 

There seems to be a preponderance of people having “Identity Crisis”; people not knowing who they are; living delusional lives of confusion and uncertainty.  There are those who know who they are and conduct their life with assurance, making strong declarations of affirmation with positive statements and putting appropriate action to the affirmations.   Sometimes these assured individuals are misjudged by others who choose to mischaracterize them with negative aspersions and accusations.  Why does this happen? 

Perhaps the self-assured individual made a mistake by taking action without having all the facts.  Another possibility is taking appropriate action that goes against the popular trend.  You also have situations when others may be jealous of the positive person because they lack strong convictions or simply have differing viewpoints and are unwilling to admit the possibility of being in error themselves.  Or, the accusers simply have the wrong perception based on their own experiences that are counter to the other person’s position.  One other condition is their refusal to accept anything other than what they want to believe, no matter how unfounded their thinking may be. 

These situations will invariably occur and it can foster self-doubt within the person, as they may question whether they had taken the right action.  Even if they are certain they did the right thing it still leaves unpleasant feelings because the negative effects it may have upon others.  This now leaves us in a dilemma as to the proper, corrective direction to take when this occurs.   Usually the tendency is to fight back to “set the record straight”, but all too often this proves to be counter-productive as it provides fodder that will be used against you, no matter how senseless it may be to do so.  There are times it’s best to let it go and ride out the “storm”, allowing time to soothe over the matter.  In all cases you can never go wrong in bringing it to the Father in prayer for wisdom and discernment in these matters. 

What is important is to never let go of your true identity.  However, that doesn’t mean to bury your head in the sand and ignore the lessons that can be learned in such cases.  Acknowledge any error you may have made and take corrective measures as may be required so you can grow as a result.  No one is perfect and errors will be made from time to time.  Simply learn from them and move on. 

Now I ask you, has your identity been stolen?  Do you know who you are?  Are you willing to make a stand against the trend?  This is food for thought.  Shalom.