An Identity Crisis...Finding "Me" in the Middle of Thousands..

Have you ever really felt like you didn't know "who" you were and asked yourself this question;
"Who am I"?

This weekend it was my recurring thought as I sat in the mall watching hundreds go by. The Mall is a good place to relax and just watch people if you like to do that. All shapes, sizes and styles can all be seen at the mall. As I watched people go by it was somewhat interesting to watch their interaction with each other or others. I watched the young people try to fit in with one another by dress. I watched as women walked by trying to keep their own taste and style young. I watched as men walked by, some oblivious to style or taste. It is interesting to note that "birds of a feather still flock together" when it comes to style of dress. The younger girls seemingly mirrored one another as did the young men. The congregated youth to the Mothers with infants, the styles of dress as different as they were the same seem to bond like an adhesive and yet some, if not most seemed extremely uncomfortable with their choices.

Relevance is an important word in humanities' struggle to belong. Fitting in or being a part or playing a part seems to be something that people do to be relevant. They want to feel good about themselves and want others to accept them and feel good about them too. Many times it seems they will sacrifice much just fit in or be accepted. The advertisements of billboards and magazines all seem to scream from the front cover to the ads in the pages that relevance is no longer individualistic struggle but it is a sacrificial one. Do what it takes to be accepted and as one add put it; "Thirst is everything, Obey Your Thirst" and some do so by giving in to the addictiveness of style. Grunge, Success, Rockers, Emo's, Skaters, Bratz, Lerners, Business, Beach, and Seductive all seem to describe what people (whether young or older) will do to fit in concerning style and relevance and yet individualism is celebrated? hmmmm....

The facts are people will always do what it takes to fit in somewhere. People have been created with a need to be accepted and want attention. Some go to extremes and we hear about them in the news or on shows and sooner rather than later life catches up and tragedy ensues.

We are created in the image of God.

This need for attention wasn't just something that happened. In the Garden of Eden where man was created the Bible says that God would come down in the cool of the Day and communicate with His creation; Man. It was King David in the Old Testament who penned "We are fearfully and Wonderfully Made. God created man to communicate His will and His ways and to show love and to be loved. The day you "Find Yourself" will be when you realize that what others think about you doesn't matter but what God thinks of you does. Try to realize today that in whatever situation your in, no matter what troubles you are having, present or past, or how you really feel about yourself recognize that there is One greater who placed the Sun, Moon and the stars in just the right places to accommodate you. He cares deeply for you and wants you to know that in the midst of thousands who may not know Him or Who He is that YOU are truly a special person to Him because He created you.

For example I may not be able to distinguish you from a crowd because you may look like everybody else but there is something that does. Your fingerprint is different from every person around you and it establishes an identity but just establishing who you are won't tell me how you feel or what you may be needing. But regardless of how I could be able to tell you a part from others God looks at your heart and the condition of your mind and He knows you from the inside out and knows exactly what you need while I don't.

I found myself in the middle of thousands at the Mall talking to God and thanking him that true individualism and self worth comes from above. It’s not directed by style or the taste of others and it's not mandated by fashion from someone who doesn’t know me or care for me but self worth and esteem is free just by asking and communicating with God and finding out "who" or "Whose" I really am.

Find some time today to be an true Individual to talk with God and be Encouraged!

Randy