Confidently Content

"Who do the crowds say I am? Who do you say I am?" A question posed to the disciples by Jesus Himself. Whenever I read the Bible and see something regarding God stating who He is or the many accounts of Jesus confronting His "Messiah-hood", I am constanly amazed. I'm amazed at the absolute confidence and assuredness of their knowing exactly who they are.

I guess that must be due to my spending the majority of my life often unsure of who I really was. My identity seemed endlessly changing with my surroundings. That's the life of a man-pleaser I guess. I was never really afraid to buck the system, but I was always cautious and dead set on being the man of the hour. Identity- who am I really? Who would I be when noone else is around or watching? That's what I marvel at when I read the accounts of Jesus. I have no doubt whatsoever that who Jesus was in private, He was in public. Praying, yet teaching - humble, yet so powerful - kind, yet always bluntly speaking truth - He had no inferiority complex. We don't read accounts of Jesus sitting around attempting to find out what His purpose in life was. We don't see Him crying out, "God why am I here?". He referred to God's word. He always took time to get alone with His Father and to hear His voice. His sole agenda was to do the will of God alone with no waivering - and that's exactly what He did. God spoke it and that was good enough for Him - no questions asked.

In Luke 9 specifically, Jesus' confidence in who He was gave Him such freedom to even ask others who they said He was. When some said, "Elijah", do you think He started to cry or become angry because they were mistaken? When others said "John the Baptist", did He run away hurt and dejected? I don't think so. Of course Jesus possessed many attributes that we can apply to our own lives, but today, I'm desiring complete assurance of who I am. I want to walk boldly as the one I was created to be. If so-and-so says that I'm a dork, so be it. If another says that I'm just some crazy guy for Jesus that is deceived, let it be. Who I am is not determined by what any outside source may say. None other opinion than that of my Heavenly Father is what should ultimately matter. And He sees me as His child, an heir to all that is His, a son, a king.

So if today you find yourself asking someone "who do you say I am?", whether audibly or just in your head, stand confidently in the knowledge of who you truly are. Not what others may incorrectly perceive about you or even what we sometimes lie to ourselves about. Be a confident child of the living God today with no need to defend or faulter. Be happy with who you are, not consumed with who you're not. You are the apple of God's eye. Now go and have the best day of your life!