Identity Theft

Psalms 55:22 (AMP) Cast your burden on the Lord [release it] and He will sustain and uphold you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken (slip, fall, fail).

Way back in the early 2000s Facebook was emerging. I started out with MySpace as my first social media platform. Then came Facebook, it took me a year to finally join. In those days we did not have apps on our phones. We opened up and checked our profiles on our computers. The computer I most used was my work computer. It was in my office. If I did not log out of Facebook and someone else would use my computer, I would get a fun status update left. These do pop up on my memories every once in a while. Things like “is a goober monkey,” “thinks John is hot,” or “really needs to start logging out of her Facebook.” Most of them were left by my husband.

I remember a special post hid did because he used my phone to take with him to the bathroom. I had the better phone, and he wanted to scroll as our men tend to do these days. The number of responses I got from his post thinking that it was me.

So here I am after nearly fifteen years and how does this equate to what I am going through right now. I had a moment of allowing the enemy to put a new identity on me…”not wanted.” Where did that come from? Did it come from my need to be seen as good growing up? My own father chose not to be a part of my life growing up. After my parents divorced, he did not visit or call that much. He did not even send gifts for birthdays or Christmas. This weighed heavy on me growing up and that is where the “not wanted” came from. It surfaced from a text message that someone sent out. My question was, “why could they not call me?” Why did this text come from a third party? The identity of “not wanted” started to surface. I battled with it most of the morning and I had had enough.

1 Peter 5:7-9 (AMP) Casting all your cares [all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares about you [with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully]. Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined], be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry], seeking someone to devour. But resist him, be firm in your faith [against his attack—rooted, established, immovable], knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being experienced by your brothers and sisters throughout the world. [You do not suffer alone.]

I am taking the groceries out of the car and talking waving my hands back and forth in a fit at the enemy. Casting my cares on God and just letting it all out. Yes, I am in the front yard. My husband calls and asks, “who are you talking to?” (He can see me on the Ring camera). I told him what I was battling and how I was handling it. He laughed and told me it was going be okay. The individual is rejecting me because of their own insecurities, and I told him I knew that, but it still hurts sometimes. I had to really allow God to do a deep work in me and had to repent even of my mindset towards this individual. I have to be careful not to assassinate their character just because of the way they are treating me. Keeping your words in check can be tough. However, I had to be reminded by the Lord that others battle this too. This was going on the same week that the SBC was voting on whether women should have the title of pastor. Guess what they call me in my church? We are not a part of the SBC, but it still was a main topic that was constantly on my news feed. I do have family that are. So, I intercede.

Acts 14:21-22 (AMP) They preached the good news to that city and made many disciples, then they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening and establishing the hearts of the disciples; encouraging them to remain firm in the faith, saying, “It is through many tribulations and hardships that we must enter the kingdom of God.”

What we put our minds on really has control over us; it can become an idol. Wanting to be someone to this person was taking over my mind. I had to release and pray. I can tell you that it did not disappear right away, but it has gone further from my mind. You can say that I am just really starting to get over it. However, you do not know how much this individual has hurt me over the years and is still involved in my life. I am standing firm on my faith. I am casting those cares to God; He actually does care about me. That is what I had to battle the “not wanted” identity with. He cares about me. Keeping my heart and mind on Him battles that identity theft that tries to come in. How about you? Do you battle identity issues? Have you believed the lie that maybe you are not loved, or that you are like me and feel like you are not what they wanted, or that you are a failure because of the mistakes that trip you up? None of them are true. That is why it is so important to read your Bibles. God also plants us in churches to build us up, especially when these lies are exposed. They need to be exposed so that real healing can come.

Why did this happen when I have come such a long way? I think it is because the enemy is looking to halt the discipleship that I have stepped into. He wants me hurt so that I cannot build up and point others to Christ. He wants me going back into dark places because there I cannot be a light. I am not ashamed of the battle. Those attacks are going to come. I would misuse His grace by living with that wrong identity. That is not who I am. I do not want to live with those thoughts, and I do not have to. What happens when they say it to my face? Recognize that it is not of God and who’s voice it really is.

1 Thessalonians 1:4 (AMP) Brothers and sisters beloved by God, we know that He has chosen you

I am chosen! I am cared for! I am wanted! I am deeply loved!

Abba Father, our Creator and our Banner, You are Marvelous and Wonderful. That You for Your Son, that put us into Your family. Thank You for Your Holy Spirit, so that we can learn more about our identity. We come before You, recognizing that our true identity is found in You. Thank You for making us in Your image and us Your children.(Genesis 1:27; 1 John 3:1). Help us see ourselves as You do—loved, chosen, and precious in Your eyes. Guide us to live in the truth of our identity in Christ, free from the enemy’s lies and the burden of past mistakes. (Proverbs 4:23; 2 Corinthians 5:17). Help us see our true worth, not through the world’s standards, but through Your Word, knowing we are blessed, redeemed, and victorious by Your grace. (Ephesians 1:3; 2 Corinthians 5:21). May we stand strong in the truth of Your love, and be empowered to walk confidently as Your children, sharing Christ’s love with others. (Romans 8:16; Ephesians 3:17-19). Help us to hear Your voice clearly and trust Your guidance, so we can live a fruitful life and fulfill the purpose You have set for us. (Philippians 3:20; Ephesians 1:9-11). May our lives be filled with Your love, and may we keep growing in understanding and embracing who we are in Christ. (1 Peter 2:9; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 1:3-5). We choose forgiveness today. We choose love today. We choose hope today. We choose joy today. In Jesus Name, Amen.