Hey my friend welcome to the latest edition of my newsletter, thanks for being here! If this blesses you, share it with someone who needs it. They can sign up free at thelowkeychristian.com/newsletter. God bless you, now let's get into it.
This week's theme: Identity.
This one might be hard to read. But I think someone needs it today.
YOU ARE NOT WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU
Something happened to you.
I don't know what it was. Maybe it was recent. Maybe it was decades ago. Maybe it was something someone did to you. Maybe it was something you did to yourself. Maybe it was a season of life that broke something inside you that you've been quietly trying to fix ever since.
And somewhere along the way, that thing became your identity. Not just something that happened. Something you are.
"I am the person who got hurt." "I am the person who failed." "I am the person who was abandoned." "I am the person who can't seem to get past this."
Here's the hard truth: as long as you let your past name you, your future will always look like a repeat of it.
You are not your trauma. You are not your worst decision. You are not the thing that was done to you. You are not the sum of your regrets.
You are a person who experienced those things. But experiencing something is not the same as being defined by it.
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."
I used to struggle with this verse. Because when you're in the middle of pain, the last thing you want to hear is "God will use it for good." It feels dismissive. It feels like a pat on the back when what you need is someone to sit with you in the wreckage.
But here's what I've come to understand. This verse isn't saying that what happened to you was good. It's not saying God caused it. It's not saying you should be grateful for the pain.
It's saying that God is so powerful and so committed to you that He can take the very thing the enemy meant to destroy you with and turn it into the thing that shapes you, strengthens you, and eventually helps someone else.
Your pain is not wasted. Not one second of it.
Joseph was sold into slavery by his own brothers. Falsely accused. Imprisoned for years. And when he finally stood in front of the brothers who tried to destroy him, he said: "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good." (Genesis 50:20)
He didn't deny the pain. He didn't pretend it didn't happen. But he refused to let it be the end of his story. He let God write a new chapter.
That's available to you too. Not by pretending the past didn't happen. Not by forcing yourself to "get over it." But by slowly, patiently, allowing God to rewrite the narrative.
You are not what happened to you. You are who God says you are. And He says you are loved, chosen, redeemed, and being made new. Every single day.
YOUR ONE THING FOR TODAY
If there's a past event that has been defining your identity, write down this sentence and put it somewhere visible: "That happened to me. But it is not who I am. God is writing a new chapter." Read it every time the old story tries to replay itself.
God, I've been letting my past write my future. I've been carrying a version of myself that's built on pain and I'm tired of it. Today I'm asking You to do what only You can do. Take the broken pieces and make something new. I'm not asking You to erase what happened. I'm asking You to redeem it. Use it. Turn it into something that brings hope to someone else one day. I'm not what happened to me. I'm who You say I am. Help me to live like that's true. Amen.
FROM THE ARCHIVE
If your past has been keeping you stuck, I made a video called How I Defeated Fear as a Christian. It's about pushing through the things that try to hold you back.
OVER TO YOU
What's one thing from your past that you've been letting define you? You don't have to share details. Just hit reply and say "I'm letting go of it." That's enough.
God bless you, my friend.
The LowKey Christian
P.S. If you've been struggling with anxiety and it's shaking your sense of who you are, my eBook Faith Over Fear walks through 7 chapters of practical, biblical steps to calm an anxious heart. Grab it here: https://thelowkeychristian.com/ebook