Big Idea: For you and I to not allow anything to define our worth, our value, our identity, in short, who we are, except Christ

Not only do the important people in our lives sometimes frustrate our ability to effectively answer the question, “Who am I?” But the wider culture frustrates our ability as well. Take a look at the last 50 years and see how the roles of men, women and kids have been defined. 

1. If you were to guess, what would you say was a women’s primary role in the family during the 1950’s? House wife and nurturer
2. If you were to guess, what would you say is a woman’s role in the family today? Dual roles. Generally speaking, in our culture women are:
   1. Co-owners – breadwinner
   2. Haven’t lost the nurturer, homemaker role

                                                              i.      Stress is the major thing that identifies a wife and a mom today, because she is torn in her role.

1. Stress and pressure is on the wife – keep everyone happy, work, work, work
2. If you were to guess, what would you say primarily identified a child or a youth’s role in the home during the 1950’s? Innocence, safety,  balance

If you were to guess, what would you say often identified a child or a youth’s role today?

1. Mom and dad working, so they’re often on their own with little parental involvement. Even when parents are home, they are so engaged in what they need to do, that they often don’t provide the emotional stability that the kids need. There is more pressure on the family and that pressure often filters down to the children.
2. Besides all that, youth culture – attitudes, ideas, what’s valued, what’s accepted, today changes every 5-7 years, as opposed to what used to take decades to change in the 1950’s. This leaves our kids guessing more than ever what’s right, what’s wrong, and what’s accepted. We are living in an unprecedented time of shifting culture and this makes it very difficult for our kids to effectively answer the question, “Who am I?” But it’s not just happening with kids.

1. If you were to guess, what would you say identified a man’s role in the home in the 1950”s – protector, provider
2. If you were to guess what would you say identified a man’s role in the home today?
   1. Many are not sure?
   2. What is our role?
   3. Many things are grabbing for your identity

I find it interesting. If you ask a Marine, “When did you become a Marine?” They will 9times out of 10 say, “When I finished boot camp.” But if you ask a man when he became a man, 9 times out of ten he won’t be able to tell you. The same man who knew when he became a Marine, can’t tell you when he became a man.

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Clip from Bourne Identity – Bourne and girl talking in a diner early in the movie

Big Idea: For you and I to not allow anyone to define our worth, our value, our identity, in short, who we are, except Christ

Have you ever asked yourself the question, “Who am I”? Have you ever probed the answer to the questions, “Where do I find my identity? Where does my sense of worth or value come from? What gives me my sense of worth or takes it away? What is my purpose in life? Where do I find my belonging?” Have you ever asked yourself the question, “Who Am I?”

The most important process in building a house is the foundation – the footings. When I general contracted my house, the first thing we did was to dig a big hole and pour the footings that my house was going to be supported from. The building code specifies and requires a foundation for every house. The building inspector comes and inspects to see that you have a firm foundation before you can do any other building on your house. Your house requires a foundation in order to stand firm in the midst of all that Mother Nature throws at it. The question is, “Do you and I require a firm foundation for our lives to be built upon. Did your architect – the one who designed you, did he plan for your life to be built upon a firm foundation, so that when the storms of life came, you would be standing firm, not shaking, completely at peace, because you knew what you stood on.

Have you ever asked yourself the question, “Who am I?” It seems I’ve been asking myself that question most of my life. Read the rest of this entry »