heavenly identity

i remember when chance called me and asked me to write this blog. i initially felt a deep sense of honor to be asked to contribute my thoughts to something he has created and is passionate about. i also initially thought… what on earth would i say? what is something that has captivated my heart and fed my soul as i walk with Jesus? instead of giving you my whole-life story, i thought it might be most helpful to share a specific scenario that reshaped my perspective and re-navigated the way i face the problems and pressures of life. my hope isn’t that you’d clap for me after reading this - rather my hope is that something in here would spark a sense of awe and wonder, maybe even a sense of need, for Jesus Christ in your own story.

i play baseball for rice university and during my sophomore year, our team was in birmingham, alabama playing a series at uab. when we walked in the room for bible study, there were a bunch of tired eyes looking at an abnormally long rope spread out all across the floor. we were all wondering what our coach was going to say. as we sat down, he picked the rope up and showed us a small piece of red tape attached to the beginning of the rope. he began talking about our lives in perspective of forever; about the frailty and fragility of life and how fast it goes by. he pointed to a tiny piece of red tape at the beginning of the rope. 'that tape represents our lives on Earth.' then he let go of the red tape and held up the rest of the rope, 'all of the remaining rope represents our eternity in Heaven.' that was the simplest, yet most eye-opening example i had ever seen in my life. maybe it was because of the mindset i had at the time: i was dealing with slumps on the field and battling through an injury. i was wrapped up in my own problems and began to feel how worrisome they were to my soul. the negative burdens i placed upon my shoulders only let me see the self pity of the circumstances i was in. without trying, my whole mindset had come about myself… about my life. that small piece of red tape seemed to be all that mattered to me. but that day in birmingham, that cheap piece of rope taught me a lesson that has stayed with me. the thought that my life —and everyone’s life— is just a small strip of red tape at the beginning of an unending rope made me reconsider what i was spending my time worrying and thinking about. it made me reconsider the way in which i stepped into each day. it reminded me that i wouldn’t find joy and fulfillment by only dwelling on the success, failures, problems, and pressures of this small life. i will only find joy and fulfillment in the One who holds that rope —let alone all my success, failures, problems, and pressures— in His hands.

i titled this blog post 'heavenly identity' because it is something that has served as a great reminder of who i truly am, of who we truly are, in the perspective of Eternity. it is so easy to measure our worth or get our identity from temporary things within this life. when we understand that we are part of a bigger and longer story, it becomes clear that our value does not come from position, power, or success. in fact, it is the opposite of this. in Romans 12:3-6 we see that true self-esteem and true identity comes only from being exactly what God created us to be. 'by the grace given to me i say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. for as in one body, we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them.'

every moment that we are alive we are constantly being formed. we are either being formed to become more like what God has intended us to be or being drawn farther away from that. what changed for me that day in birmingham was that i realized my identity in Jesus Christ.

how we spend eternity matters.

our lives on this side of the grave are important but they don’t last long. that red tape and the rope helped me understand that i was spending so much time thinking about my current problems, and situations that seemed overwhelming. my self-esteem was coming from who the world and myself said i was. but what i needed to understand was that it’s who God says i am that matters. he created this world - created me and you - and has given us specific gifts with an unknown amount of time to use those gifts to honor Him. our Father makes every affliction we face glorious, every hour of trial is meant for good fruits for his kingdom. there is no need for intense striving from us to form ourselves into something spectacular because God breathes life into our lungs which makes us more joyful and confident than anything we could attain from ourselves.

c.s. lewis puts it this way, 'the more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become - because He made us. He invented us. He invented all the different people that you and i were intended to be. . . it is when i turn to Christ, when i give up myself to His personality, that i first begin to have a real personality of my own.”

i hope that if this speaks to you, if you are feeling weary from all of the pressures and problems in this life, that you would give it to God. that you would start to focus more on the lengthy rope than the short bit of red tape. how we spend this life matters and we have a Savior who longs to sit with us now to offer us eternal life. 'come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and i will give you rest. take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.' (Mathew 28-30)

when we look into our Father’s eyes at the end of our time, our temporary pressures and problems of life in this small red strip will fade. at the sight of His eyes, we will find mercy, comfort, love, and joy. matter of fact, we will find life itself. 

-n0tbyconnor