Rejected. Unloved. Failure. Outcast. Whether we realize it or not, the names that we call ourselves have the power to shape our identity and form our beliefs.
Do you believe the truth about yourself? Or are you believing the lies?
Allison Allen shares a defining moment in her life when God invited her to make an exchange with Him at the altar to find her true identity in Christ.
“I’ve never heard the Lord audibly, but somehow this was a little bit louder than audibly, if that makes sense. It was so deep in my heart and I felt like the Lord whispered, ‘Allison, you don’t call your kids by the wrong proper names, and I don’t call my kids by the wrong spiritual names.’ That just stopped me in my tracks.”
“What it felt like God was saying or imparting to me was, ‘Allison, I’m never going to call you to the grand adventure of faith by saying, ‘Rejected, do you want to come on an adventure?’ He was never going to call me according to that false name.”
“Anytime I got near to feeling like that name I would run the other way. But if I could understand I was ‘accepted’ then I might actually take a step towards this great thing that the Lord was asking me to join Him in.”
Allison reminds believers that we are invited to exchange the false names that we have believed about ourselves for the truth of God’s Word. We see a precedents for an identity exchange, even in the Scriptures. Allison refers to the story of Jacob found in Genesis 32:22-31.
“They’re wrestling all night and Jacob says, ‘I want a blessing,’ and the angel says, ‘I want a name; tell me who you really think you are.’ He spits it out and basically says, ‘I’m a deceiver and I’m a manipulator. That’s what my name means.’ Then the angel says, ‘actually, you’re Israel.'”
“There is a scriptural precedent for bringing something and receiving something different – no differently than we give our hearts to Christ.”
Jesus wants us to bring false identity to the altar, surrender the lies we have believed about ourselves, and walk away with His truth.
Allison Allen is a graduate of the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University and appeared in 650 performances of the Broadway production of Grease. A former Women of Faith dramatist and current Bible teacher, she speaks to women at conferences and retreats around the country, exploring themes of purpose, value, and identity in original and unexpected ways. She is author of the book .
Your identity in Christ
