I have always been a hard worker. Ever since I can remember, I’ve composed lists upon lists, detailing urgent tasks and important projects. I’ve never known when to quit, it seems. “You can’t stop until the job is done,” I often tell myself. If I’m fully transparent, I can grow prideful in my work ethic). I’m telling you this from a heart of pure gratitude. I am thankful for the passion that God has given me—truly thankful.
But, there are times in which I have sorely misused this gift, wrongfully believing that with each job, each task, and each assignment, I am proving myself.
There are times in which I have allowed my work to define my identity.
Over the years, I’ve placed a debilitating amount of pressure upon myself. In fact, sometimes, it seems as if I just might crumble under the heavy burden of personal expectation
. . . and sometimes, I do.
Sometimes, I just break down.
Sometimes, I just cry tears of frustration.
Sometimes, I just sit, emotionally paralyzed by my fear of failure—depleted and drained.
. . . And when this happens, my identity is crushed.
Sometimes, I work myself so hard that I have nothing left to give.
Sometimes, I spread myself so thin that I neglect what matters most.
Sometimes, I allow my plans to usurp my priorities.
. . . And when this happens, my identity is zapped.
When I allow my work to define me, I place my sense of self upon the most-precarious of foundations.Yet, when I allow my Jesus to define me, He IS my foundation. You get the picture?
So often we stain our schedules with endless to-do’s and constant assignments yet incessantly complain that “we just need a break.” We perpetually place ourselves in demanding predicaments yet wonder why we feel weary and burned out.
We place our identities in personal performance yet marvel when our foundations self-destruct.
When we seek identity in anything (or anyone) other than Jesus Christ, our identities will be nothing more than shallow skeletons of worthlessness—empty, futile, and oh-so-fragile.
Your work ethic does not define who you are.
Your popularity does not define who you are.
Your schedule does not define who you are.
Jesus Christ is the only One who can authentically define who you are.
Let Him.
Work hard as a means of serving God, not as a quest for identity.
He asks us to “present [our] bodies a living sacrifice” (Rom. 12:1), but to look no further than the Cross for our identity. Type A’s, I get it. Trust me. We like to get things done, efficiently, effectively, and effortlessly. However, our quest for perfection can metamorphosis itself into an idol, separating us from the Savior and the sweet companions God has given us.
God is so good. Once redeemed, our identities are found in Him and Him alone.
Let’s rest in that.
Hard work is a blessing, not an identity crisis.
Verses: (Col. 3:23, Pro. 12:11, Pro. 13:14, Pro. 12:24, 2 Tim. 2:15).
Post written by Delaney Johnston