Defining Identity
As a young boy I fantasized
about being a cowboy who brought justice to the wild frontier. I owned a cowboy
hat and boots, a six shooter and its holster, a bandanna for my neck, and chaps
to protect me when I rode my imaginary horse. I even took to the stage one
summer on a family vacation. I wore my cowboy outfit while I whistled “Home on
the Range” for the kids’ talent show. I won first place in my age group (6
years old?), receiving a cup and five dollars! Now I was a rich cowboy!
Questions of identity
surface throughout our lives. Who is Bernie Schock? Who are you? When my cowboy
identity had faded into the sunset, it was replaced by other dreams. In my teen
years I hoped to become a professional baseball player; a few years later a
doctor; next I wanted to be a dairyman like my dad; during my seminary days I
tried out the idea of being a foreign missionary; and on and on.
Identity has been defined “as
that stable core of defining factors in which a voice says, “This is the real
me.” But the “real me” is difficult to define because there are so many factors
that make up our identity:
- Our physical characteristics: gender, size, race, talents, tendencies toward shyness or aggressiveness. (Look at the body of an elite athlete like Lebron James. His childhood dreams of becoming a professional athlete had a basis in reality!)
- Our histories: I am the son of the respected Al Schock. Most
people would treat me differently if I was the son of a serial murderer.
Our families have a great impact on our opportunities, education, trauma,
failures, successes. Furthermore, the friends we choose, the people we
work with or serve, the famous people we try to emulate, all have a weighty
impact on who we become.
- Our commitments: to a location; to investments of interest, time
and money. I am a Midwest boy who loves open spaces and seasonal changes. When
we lived in Florida for two years and I lost my job, we prayed: “Lord, we
are willing to go anywhere. But we would sure prefer to return to our northern
roots.”
The quest for identity is always a fluid matter. Today I am no longer the parents of pre-adult children. And as I see my identity as a professor shrinking, I wonder: Who I will be in my retirement?
Why is a study of identity
important? Each of us was created by God for special purposes, for the good works which he prepared in advance for
us to do. (Eph.2:10) My lifelong challenge is to discover those purposes so that I can be
faithful to my Creator. Some of the
greatest joys in life come to those who have discovered and are becoming the
person God created them to be.
