Life’s big questions: Who am I? Why am I here? – Living Grace-filled in a SLATHY World

I absolutely love talking with people about their unique strengths and purpose.

As I learn more about who I am and how I was created, I’m realizing how much I enjoy spending time with others, encouraging us all to recognize and live out our worth.

For the past few years, I’ve been fascinated with understanding our needs, strengths, and purposes. Like most of us, I’ve considered questions about who am I, why am I here, and what do I really need to be “happy?”

There’s certainly plenty of books, podcasts, shows, surveys, and speakers covering these topics. I could read/watch/listen all day long for an entire year and still not digest everything that’s been published on this topic.

So, what’s the key to happiness?

Contrary to many popular voices, I do not believe the key to happiness and success can be found by channeling my inner goddess, putting myself first, getting rich, gaining more power, or posting lots of images showing how I’m “living my best life.”

Rather, the more days I spend on this earth, the more I think the key comes from something else entirely. It’s about moving from me-ology to theology. This means recognizing and living out my true identity based not on what the world deems worthy, but on who God says I am—created, purposed, talented, strong, chosen, loved, brave, free, forgiven, redeemed, complete, and victorious.

When we transition from self-focus to Jesus-focus, we actually end up with a better self-image—because it’s dependent on him who made us, not on ourselves.
—Jen Oshman

Let’s face it—deep down we all know we’re not really “good.” In fact, we’re actually quite broken. So when we see images of supposed “perfection,” we feel like we need to strive toward that. But it is totally exhausting to think I have to constantly be working on fixing myself, to somehow save myself. <sigh>

I’ve already been saved.

Thankfully, there’s a better way. it is so freeing to hand over the reigns to the One who knows exactly what I need even before I can think it, and has already paid the price for me to spend eternity with him in perfection.

I have a lot more to say about this… 🙂

For now, I’ll leave you with this first set of images to help us remember some of our core identity traits. I created these because, despite Scripture telling us these things, we don’t really believe them as deeply as we should.

We need to put these words in front of our minds more often than we ingest the ways of the world. (Romans 12:2)

We need to bind them to our hearts and post them around our homes. (Deuteronomy 6:9)

We need to say these truths to one another, to encourage us all to live out our strengths and purpose. (Hebrews 10:24-25)