Our Fixation with Labels

Something I've been noticing for awhile is that as people, we crave identity!

We love to label things and name things. We love to give generalizations, to create the scope and outlook of a thing.

It's as if we are wanting to make something that naturally is dynamic and unpredictable, into something a little more controllable. We don't totally understand why we are drawn to certain things and react in certain ways, so we turn to astrology. We don't fully understand others tendencies, so we use tests like Meyers Briggs, Enneagram, or Strength Finders.

We put so much emphasis on situational labels such as wife, mom, business owner, MBA, PHD. As if those titles will bring our world under our control. Because isn't that the way of humans? If you can name it, you can claim it? If you discover a star, an animal, an island you can claim it as your discovery and you get the right to name it?

We enjoy labels, we enjoy claiming our identity, our space, our possessions and making it something concrete. We like the ability to display our journey, our accomplishments, our sacrifices on the outside.

We like the idea of people immediately knowing something about us that we deem as worthy and set a part.

But here is the crooked truth. The more we pour ourselves into these things, the more broken we become. Then the more broken we become, the more we want to pour ourselves into these things. But these things, these titles represent something messy. They are complicated ,they are held with tension because these labels are as fickle and temporary as the person who gave them.

We like the idea that we can claim them for the rest of our lives, as if that one moment or season of control and success could last decades. But we can't claim them over the entirety of our lives.

These titles, these accomplishments are truly a moment, a season. And in comparison to eternity they are a grain of sand on a beach.

You were never always a mom, you were never always a wife, you were never always a business owner, you were never always a college graduate.

You are never always the quiet girl, the party girl, the team leader. However, the one label that truly matters is also the simplest. It is the one that holds the most weight, and it is redeemed.

Redeemed means to bring out of ,to be brought back to. It is an action done on to you, out of the love of another, not in your control or by your actions at all.

Which means we have to let our pride die and we cannot claim this glory for ourselves. It is not innately our glory, instead it is glory we get to be a part of.

It is a title that truly lasts through the ages and speaks into eternity. Because the one who gave it is eternal. The one who bestowed it made the ages. The one who claimed you as redeemed is the one who fought hell to bring you out and brought you back to the throne room of grace.

That is the title that matters. That is the title that holds the weight.

But even after this how is it that we hold the other trophies in higher esteem? Or how often do we think being redeemed also means that we are without fault?

Sometimes I think we are okay with not being perfect because we have made ourselves believe that are intentions are.

We can easily trick ourselves into believing that we would never intentionally harm someone. We deny the fact that even though we have started following Christ and walk with the Holy Spirit, that we still hurt people on purpose.

We still make snide remarks on purpose, we still choose to not serve people on purpose, we still choose to be neglectful on purpose, we still choose that white lie on purpose.

If we are not intentional about owning that one important label, 'redeemed' and prayerfully consider what that means; we can start to believe that our goodness is from our own doing. We can start to loose that intentionality to become more like the one who redeemed us.

What if we while we accepted the fact that our actions will never be perfect, we also accepted that our intentions are often off the mark as well?

So when we say we're redeemed, when we claim the title of redeemed, we can let that flow into every other aspect of our lives. It allows us the grace to not beat ourselves up. That grace protects our hearts from that attacks of Satan that say we are less than, that we are abandoned, that we are broken and useless.

Claiming that title of redeemed is a stronghold against the lies that would love to wound your soul and purpose.

But it is also a stronghold against our pride.

When I claim I am redeemed I know I have a higher calling. I am redeemed therefore I get to throw my pride down at the feet of Christ with a joyful heart.

I am redeemed so I get to be made aware of my sin, of my pride, of my ill intentions, and I have the power to choose to rise above. That is what being redeemed means friend. So let's go and live into that promise.

As always, I'm here if you need me.

Your Friend Kenz