Shame and Identity, Part 4: The Micro Identity
Yesterday, we talked about our Macro identity: who we are as Believers through the work of Christ. Today, we’ll discuss our Micro identity.
Our Micro identity is the part of our identity that is unique to us, the way no human is the exact same as another human. Our Micro identities were determined for us when God knitted us together in our mothers’ wombs.
Our Micro identity includes the special traits God gives us, such as our personality types, our intelligence, or even our hand-eye coordination. Our Micro identity encompasses all of our strengths, weaknesses, successes, and failures. Our Micro identity also includes our story and experiences.
In the moment, we may not always see how God uses our specific traits and experiences to accomplish the good works He has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). But our lack of knowledge does not stop God from fulfilling His will.
For example, we can see how God used Moses’ Micro identity in Scripture.
In Exodus 1:15-4:31, we read that Pharaoh ordered all Hebrew baby boys killed. Moses should have been one of them, but his mother hid him. When he couldn’t be hidden any longer, his mother put him in a basket and floated three-month-old Moses down a river.
Of all people, the person who found Moses was Pharaoh’s daughter. She knew he was a Hebrew and decided to keep and raise him as her own. Pharaoh, the one who gave the order for all baby boys to be killed, must have accepted Moses.
Since Egypt was the superpower of the day, Moses likely received the best leadership development training on the planet. He learned all the customs of the court of Pharaoh. He also developed a love for his fellow Hebrews, even though he didn’t experience their hardships.
Then at age 40, Moses was forced to flee Egypt because it was discovered that, in his zeal for his people, he had killed an Egyptian who had beaten one of his fellow Hebrews.
He then spent the next 40 years tending sheep. He learned humility and meekness during this time—two invaluable traits for his future ministry.
God then called Moses to do one of the good works He had created Moses to do: rescuing the Hebrew people from Pharoah. Moses had the right story, right strengths, right weaknesses, right successes, and right failures to fulfill this calling.
God worked through Moses to accomplish all He wanted to accomplish.
Nothing Moses did was left up to chance.
God made sure that everything happened exactly as He wanted it to happen.
God is doing and will continue to do the same with you. He is taking you through a unique curriculum that trains and prepares you for the good works He created you to do. When each of those good works arrives, He will ensure they are done exactly how He desires them to be done. The cool part is that you may not even know what these good works are. However, we can know that God will use our Micro identity - all of our strengths, weaknesses, successes, and failures - to advance His Kingdom.
To read more on what Scripture says about this, see Psalm 139:13-14, Ephesians 4:11-12, Ephesians 2:10, and Exodus 1:15-2:10.
Prayer: Father, thank You for making me the way You made me. Thank You that there is no need for me to compare myself with anyone else or to envy someone else’s gifts. You have given me unique tasks that are valuable to You. Thank You that my life has a purpose. Thank You for making sure I do them. I might not even know what some of those good works are. Lord, help me understand my Micro identity and how to leverage all of who I am for Your glory.
Chew On This:
What strengths have you had as a young kid that you still have today and probably will always have? How have you seen God use those strengths.
To continue to part 5 of our Shame and Identity series, click here. To return to part 3, click here.