4 Gifts When God Adopts You Series

Do You Know Who You Are? I don’t mean if you have proper identification. So many people struggle with the security of knowing who they are really are. Let me tell you a quick story of a United Airlines gate agent. A United Airlines gate agent in Denver, Colorado, several years was confronted with a passenger who was acting extremely rude and demanding. This United flight had just been canceled and this one agent had the unenviable task of rebooking a long line of travelers and they were all upset because they had been inconvenienced. Suddenly, an angry passenger pushed his way to the front of the line, stood before the agent’s desk, slapped his ticket down on the counter, and said, “I’ve got to be on the next flight and it had better be first class!” The agent said, “Sir, I’m very sorry for the inconvenience you are going through and I’ll be happy to help you, but you are going to have to get back in line and wait your turn and I’ll do everything I can to work something out.” This just made this man even angrier. So in a voice loud enough so that everyone could hear him he said, “Look at me. Do you have any idea who I am?” At this moment and without hesitation, the gate agent smiled, grabbed the public address microphone where she could be heard throughout the entire area. She then said, “May I have your attention, please? We have a passenger here at gate 42 who does not know who he is. If anyone can help him find his identity would you please come to the gate?” Most of us have seen that guy before or dealt with someone like this guy. But the agent raises a great question: Do You Know Who You Are?

The cross of Jesus gives you a great gift to enjoy right now. The gospel frees you up to be the person you were made to be.

Locate the book of Ephesians with me. If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, you will see what God has done for you. If you are NOT a follower of Jesus Christ, you will see what God wants to do for you.

So many people struggle with who they “really are.”

The Imposter Syndrome

I recently came across an article entitled “Why Highly Successful People Seek Therapy.” I was amazed to discover that of the five most common reasons highly successful people go to counseling and seek therapy - the number one reason is what is called “Imposter Syndrome.” Imposter Syndrome is the persistent feeling that you are just not good enough - that you are inadequate, that you are a fraud and a fake. In other words, it is a struggle with self-esteem. And this impacts everybody - even the richest, the most successful, and the most famous.

Hollywood Insecurities

You may be surprised to find out that some of the biggest names in Hollywood have insecurities. Lady Gaga said of herself, “I never felt pretty enough or smart enough or a good enough musician.” Closer to my day, the wildly successful Madonna said of herself: “I have an iron will. And all of my will has always been to conquer some horrible feeling of inadequacy. I’m always struggling with that fear. … My drive in life is from this horrible fear of being mediocre. And that's always pushing me, pushing me. Because even though I've become Somebody, I still have to prove that I’m Somebody. My struggle has never ended and it probably never will.” One more, John Lennon wrote the lyrics to the famous Beatles song, “Help.” Lennon would have been 80 years old late this last year. John Lennon wrote those first words, “Help! I need somebody. Help! Not just anybody,” Lennon said of the song, “When ‘Help!’ came out I was actually crying out for help. Most people think it is just a fast, rock-‘n’- roll song. I didn’t realize it at the time; … But later, I knew I really was crying out for help.”

But you don’t have to be from Hollywood to be feeling like you’re not enough. One in four young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 tell us they’ve considered suicide according to a CDC report from this past summer. The number of people adults who are experiencing depression has tripled in the United States.

The Problem Inside of Us

The truth is we don’t feel complete even in good times. We feel like we need popularity. We feel like we need love. We need status. We need money. We need power. Our problems are not on the outside but our problem is on the inside. The Bible says that every human being, deep down inside of them somewhere knows they aren’t as they should be.