When I went through deliverance in May 2020 one of the first things God told me was to be very transparent with my life and my experiences. That started about a week later when He told me to share my testimony about being set free from the effects of childhood sexual abuse. Since that time I have been very transparent with my life. He even had me write a book about my life. It felt a little odd at first to know that people had the ability to read about my struggles and the dark parts of me and my life, but it was way more important to me that they could read about God’s chain breaking power.
I actively try to be the person He created me to be. I use to accept the identity that I thought was mine. It was shaped by abuse, rejection, pain, and lies from the enemy. I thought it was only natural for those things to shape who I was, but God started teaching me about real identity. He showed me that so many things attach to our identity that are lies and not even part of who we are. We accept the lies as truth and then they become part of who we are. We must stop believing the lies, replace them with truth, and become the people God has created us to be. Abuse and trauma happen to us, but they do not have to define us. My past is no longer allowed to dictate who I am. I see the truth of who God made me to be and that is the only truth I will accept and listen to. I don’t hide who I am or who I was because they both speak to God’s amazing power to break chains and change us from the inside out.
Identity
So many times we get our identity from what others say and think about us and sometimes even from what we perceive others think of us. We can so easily get stuck in the self-made bondage of caring so much what others think.
We need to be asking ourselves who God says we are? His opinion is really the only one that matters. When we really get this and really live by it our lives are drastically changed. We break out of the bondage of caring what everyone else thinks. That is true freedom.
The enemy tries to steal our identity and make us doubt who we are and feel worthless which leads to self-hatred, unforgiveness towards ourselves which opens the door to regret, condemnation, and shame. Lack of true identity can also derail us from the kingdom purposes of God. We can be so busy living in a less than state that we totally miss what God has for us. The enemy wants to make us powerless and completely miss our kingdom purpose and calling.
If we really want to know who God says we are we must ask Him and get into His Word. That is where we will always find truth.
Who are we and what does God (scripture) say about us:
He thinks about us and has plans and purpose for us:
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans and thoughts that I have for you,’ says the Lord, ‘plans for peace and well-being and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.
We are valuable to Him:
Luke 12:7 Indeed the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not be afraid; you are far more valuable than many sparrows.
He loves us:
Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced [and continue to be convinced—beyond any doubt] that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present and threatening, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the [unlimited] love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
He died, so we can walk in healing, salvation, and freedom:
Isaiah 53:5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our wickedness [our sin, our injustice, our wrongdoing]; The punishment [required] for our well-being fell on Him, And by His stripes (wounds) we are healed.
We are His children:
Ephesians 1:5 He predestined and lovingly planned for us to be adopted to Himself as [His own] children through Jesus Christ, in accordance with the kind intention and good pleasure of His will
He is our Creator and we belong to Him.
Isaiah 43:1 But now, this is what the Lord, your Creator says, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you [from captivity]; I have called you by name; you are Mine
We are never alone. The enemy will try to isolate us and make us feel like we are abandoned and alone but that is a lie.
Joshua 1:9 HaveI not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
He speaks to us to give us guidance.
Isaiah 30:21 Your ears will hear a word behind you, “This is the way, walk in it,” whenever you turn to the right or to the left.
He wants us to have peace.
John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; My [perfect] peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid. [Let My perfect peace calms you in every circumstance and give you courage and strength for every challenge.]
He has given us power, love, and a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control].
We are fearfully and wonderfully made.
Psalm 139:14 I will give thanks and praise to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well.
Psalm 139:13-14 For You formed my innermost parts; You knit me [together] in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks and praise to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well.
We are made in His image.
Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) make man in Our image, according to Our likeness [not physical, but a spiritual personality and moral likeness]; and let them have complete authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the cattle, and over the entire earth, and over everything that creeps and crawls on the earth.”
He loves us so much that He gave His own Son so we could be saved.
John 3:16 “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish but have eternal life.”
We are His workmanship.
Ephesians 2:10 For we are His workmanship [His own master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us].
We have been called out of darkness.
1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a consecrated nation, a [special] people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies [the wonderful deeds and virtues and perfections] of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
The Holy Spirit lives in us.
1 Corinthians 3:16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?
We are new creations.
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he is a new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].
We are more than conquerors.
Romans 8:37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors and gain an overwhelming victory through Him who loved us [so much that He died for us].
He does not condemn us, He convicts. The enemy condemns and makes us run from God, God convicts and causes us to run to Him.
Romans 8:1Therefore, there is now no condemnation [no guilty verdict, no punishment] for those who are in Christ Jesus [who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior].
We are the light of the world that shines the Light of Jesus in the dark places.
Matthew 5:14 “You are the light of [Christ to] the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;
We can do all things though Jesus Who lives in us.
Philippians 4:13 I can do all things [which He has called me to do] through Him who strengthens and empowers me [to fulfill His purpose—I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency; I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace.]
Jesus is our Friend.
John 15:15 I do not call you servants any longer, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you [My] friends, because I have revealed to you everything that I have heard from My Father.
We are seated in heavenly places.
Ephesians 2:6 And He raised us up together with Him [when we believed], and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, [because we are] in Christ Jesus,
We do not ever have to walk in fear.
Psalm 27:1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—Whom shall, I fear? The Lord is the refuge and fortress of my life—Whom shall I dread?
We are one with Jesus.
1 Corinthians 6:17 But the one who is united and joined to the
Lord is one spirit with Him.
He provides a way out for every temptation.
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation [regardless of its source] has overtaken or enticed you that is not common to human experience [nor is any temptation unusual or beyond human resistance]; but God is faithful [to His word—He is compassionate and trustworthy], and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability [to resist], but along with the temptation He [has in the past and is now and] will [always] provide the way out as well, so that you will be able to endure it [without yielding, and will overcome temptation with joy].
He forgives our sins.
1 John 1:9 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just [true to His own nature and promises] and will forgive our sins and cleanse us continually from all unrighteousness [our wrongdoing, everything not in conformity with His will and purpose].
We can approach Him in boldness and confidence.
Ephesians 3:12 in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him [that is, our faith gives us sufficient courage to freely and openly approach God through Christ].
We have eternal life with Him.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God [that is, His remarkable, overwhelming gift of grace to believers] is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We are no longer slaves to sin.
Romans 6:6 We know that our old self [our human nature without the Holy Spirit] was nailed to the cross with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin.
He gives us hope.
Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing [through the experience of your faith] that by the power of the Holy Spirit you will abound in hope and overflow with confidence in His promises.
He makes our path straight.
Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in and rely confidently on the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him,
And He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].
He sings over us.
Zephaniah 3:17 “The Lord your God is in your midst, A Warrior who saves. He will rejoice over you with joy; He will be quiet in His love [making no mention of your past sins], He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.
He cares for us.
1 Peter 5:6-7 Therefore, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God [set aside self-righteous pride], so that He may exalt you [to a place of honor in His service] at the appropriate time, casting all your cares [all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares about you [with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully].
We can approach His throne of mercy and grace. He is never off limits to us.
Hebrews 4:16 Therefore, let us [with privilege] approach the throne of grace [that is, the throne of God’s gracious favor] with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find [His amazing] grace to help in time of need [an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment].
He is our Guardian.
2 Thessalonians 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you [setting you on a firm foundation] and will protect and guard you from the evil one.
He makes all things possible.
Luke 1:37 For with God nothing [is or ever] shall be impossible.”
He is our salvation.
Isaiah 12:2 “Behold, God, my salvation! I will trust and not be afraid, For the Lord God is my strength and song; Yes, He has become my salvation.”
How to Walk His Identity
Lies
We must focus on being who God says we are and understand anything else is a lie. The lies either come from ourselves or the enemy. We must combat them every single time they enter our minds. Our Creator is the only one who can speak to who we are. He even knows us better than we know ourselves. We cannot entertain the thoughts or allow them to linger, even for a moment. What we feed grows so we must feed our true identity and not lies.
Word of God
We can use the above list of scriptures to speak over our lives and find others that are meaningful. We must speak them, mediate on them, use them in prayer and also use them against enemy. When he tries to say who we are we can speak the Word of God right back to him and let him know who we really are. We must always combat lies with the truth found in the Word of God. When others try to tell us who we are we must make sure it lines up with the Word of God and if it doesn’t, we must dismiss it and not accept their label as truth. Labels are sticky so once we accept them they can be really hard to get rid of.
Our Past
We are not stuck in who we used to be. We can change and grow in the Lord by the renewing of our minds and maturity in the Lord. We are also not what has happened to us. We may have survived trauma, pain and hurt, but we do not have to accept the label of victim. We do not have to let what happened to us define who we are. That happened to us, in a moment in time, and it does not get to dictate who we are if we do not allow it. The enemy would love for us to get stuck in identifying as a victim, but that is a lie. We are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ. We do not have to get stuck in the past and it does not have to dictate our present or future.
Blessings,
Nichole Henson, Fullness of Joy Ministry
Link to my testimony book: Breaking out of Darkness: How I was set free from Depression, PTSD, and Dissociative Identity Disorder
Link to my testimony video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYNhREPV6Fk&t=109s
Fullness Of Joy Ministry 
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