Why Knowing Your Identity Is Crucial to Survival
To build a foundation that does not crumble when trials, tribulations, or the storms of life come, it is important to develop a value and belief system that extends beyond the grave.
Many people are living through an identity crisis and don't even realize it. An identity crisis can show up when someone starts questioning why they did something they normally wouldn't do, develops destructive habits, and has no clue where they came from. Struggling to turn down an offer that you would easily reject in your mind, breaking promises you made to yourself, or changing your personality and character to fit in with a crowd you normally wouldn't hang around are all subtle signs that your identity is not strong.
When trouble arises, and the solution depends on who we truly are, a lack of a stable identity can turn a difficult situation into a much bigger crisis. That crisis can eventually lead to a destructive and devastating life story.
Our identities are shaped by our childhood experiences, family, relationships, and values. Children are often asked about what they value because it helps reveal who they are and what boundaries they have established for situations that may try to tear them down. When we consistently remind ourselves of our values and surround ourselves with people who share them, it becomes much easier to build a solid foundation and remain confident in who we are.
How Do People End Up in an Identity Crisis?
It can be easy to fall into an identity crisis when we stop reminding ourselves of our values and drift away from people who share them.
A good example is a college student who moves away from family and hometown friends to a new city or state. That student is now in an environment where people may not share the same values. If the student does not actively remind themselves of their beliefs and live by them, it becomes easy to be swept away by the values of their peers and eventually end up in an identity crisis.
Another example can be found in the workplace. A Christian who does not remain rooted in the Word and their identity in Christ can easily be influenced by the temptations of coworkers who do not share the same beliefs and values. Instead of declining an invitation to happy hour after work, the Christian who is on the brink of an identity crisis may fear the ostracism that could come from not attending. This is something they likely would have firmly declined if they were standing steadfast and immovable in who they are.
As time goes on, that person may drift further away from Christ and begin developing habits such as drinking excessively or participating in conversations that tear others down instead of building them up.
Over time, when a person consistently engages in behaviors that are the complete opposite of what they value and believe, those habits and behaviors begin to define them. However, when those habits and behaviors are constantly changing, the person ends up standing on a shaky foundation. The waves keep moving back and forth, but the person is not moving forward. In fact, they may be slowly regressing.
The future becomes uncertain because situations that arise cannot be met with firm decisions rooted in an established identity. Life requires us to make decisions, and without a solid identity, those decisions can end up destroying rather than building. An identity crisis is easy to fall into when you stop reminding yourself of your values and beliefs and fail to live by them.
Fear Can Lead to an Identity Crisis
Fear is one of the most common ways people enter an identity crisis.
Many people have strong values and beliefs. However, when life tests them through financial difficulties, marital problems, peer pressure, or other hardships, it can be easy to compromise if those values do not extend beyond the problems of this life or even the grave itself.
Using the example of the Christian in the workplace, the fear of being ostracized for refusing to participate in the sinful and self-destructive behaviors of coworkers can cause them to compromise. Over time, those compromises lead them away from Christ and into an identity crisis.
During the civil rights era, there were white Christians who believed in the Word of God but continued to discriminate against Black people. In some cases, this may have been influenced by fear of retaliation or rejection from their peers.
In John 12:42-43, it states that “many did believe in him even among the rulers, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, so that they would not be banned from the synagogue. For they loved human praise more than praise from God.”
Many people genuinely believed in Jesus. However, because the leaders of the synagogue opposed Him, they feared the consequences of publicly confessing their faith. They desired the approval of people more than the approval of God, which led them into an identity crisis. What they claimed to value, Christ, did not ultimately influence their decision because fear took control.
One of the most common fears people struggle with is the desire to be accepted by others. The Bible strongly warns against living to please people:
In Galatians 1:10, “For am I now trying to persuade people, or God? Or am I striving to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
Proverbs 29:25: “The fear of mankind is a snare, but the one who trusts in the Lord is protected.”
And in 1 Thessalonians 2:4, “Instead, just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please people, but rather God, who examines our hearts.”
Pleasing others should never come before your values, even if standing firm results in the loss of a relationship, a job, or even your life. If your values are not strong enough to remain firm when faced with the challenges mentioned above, then it may be time to examine and strengthen them. The reality is that everyone will face trouble in this life, especially Christians (John 16:33).
How to Have a Solid Foundation
To build a foundation that does not crumble when trials, tribulations, or the storms of life come, it is important to develop a value and belief system that extends beyond the grave.
Most people's greatest fear is death. If your values are strong enough that you are willing to stand on them even when facing death, then you have developed a powerful identity.
However, building a strong foundation does not happen overnight. It is a lifestyle. It must be practiced and lived out daily if it is going to be strong enough to withstand life's tests and storms.
For Christians, this happens by walking in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). When the Bible speaks about walking in the Spirit, it is describing a lifestyle, not a single event. It means taking God's Word seriously and living it out in every area of life. It should influence how we speak, how we spend our money, who we spend time with, where we go, and what we do with our time.
As time passes and we face tests and trials, standing firm on Christ's Word becomes easier because our lives are centered around Him and our decisions are shaped by His truth. Regularly reminding ourselves of who we are in Christ and what His Word says is one of the best ways to develop a strong identity and value system.
Studying the Word of God daily and making decisions based on God's perspective helps establish that solid foundation, which is Christ. Doing so keeps us from falling into an identity crisis and instead allows us to finish life in victory, even when faced with death.
God's Word provides answers for every area of life. From how to manage our money and spend our time to how we build relationships, choose our friends, speak to others, and conduct ourselves in the workplace, God's Word gives us a blueprint for living.
The best part is that God promises to be with us and help us. We do not work to earn God's approval. Rather, as we seek Him, He works in us to accomplish His good will (Philippians 2:13).
You can start by using these verses daily to remind yourself of who you are in Christ and continue to dive deeper into God's Word to understand who He has called you to be and how to make decisions based on your new identity in Him:
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!” - 2 Corinthians 5:17
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” - 1 Peter 2:
“I have been crucified in Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” - Galatians 2:20
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.” - Ephesians 2:10
“Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body.” - 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
“So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” - Colossians 3:1-4
“For all those led by God’s Spirit are God’s sons. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father!’” - Romans 8:14-15
