Shaping Culture With Identity
“On Earth As It Is In Heaven”
I’ve been working on this subject for a couple of months while preparing for a women’s group that I taught. We were reading out of a book that I didn’t find much connection to because the premise of the book was “sisterhood.” As someone that only grew up with brothers, I always found myself drawn to video games, Batman and playing outside way more than I ever found any attachment to playing dress-up or Barbies. I’ve had several amazing female friends throughout the years, but many of them have the same underlying theme: we are not dainty princesses and we don’t need sparkles to feel awesome. It makes it hard to connect with the female world which is driven by that image.
In one of our meetings leading to the women’s conference, we were all talking about our identity as a daughter of the King. We are all daughters, but how that image is portrayed in all of our minds can be quite different. One of my friends said, “Oh all women love pink and sparkles,” but she quickly remembered (or caught my eye-roll) and said, “except Jacki. Jacki, we know you are the exception.” But, that statement started a conversation that there are all kinds of “princesses” within the Kingdom. One woman spoke up and said, “Yes! I’m more of a warrior princess!” But, I still didn’t feel a connection with that. Warrior princess equals Xena in my mind, and I just can’t do brown leather and dirty hair. I know this sounds silly, trying to figure out what type of princess I am. It sounds like a bad quiz from Facebook. But, if I was struggling trying to find this connection with my identity as a daughter of Christ, who else might be struggling?
It wasn’t until I took my boys to see the new Frozen 2 that I found my version of a princess. Without spoilers, Elsa shaped two cultures by finding her identity - something she felt like she never had. There was a constant pulling in her from somewhere to find out who she is and where she fits in the world. She did all of this with persistence, bravery, support from her family, all while maintaining great hair. That was a princess I could get down with. I used to think of myself more as a Mother of Dragons from Game of Thrones, but she shaped culture by force - Elsa shaped culture with truth.
What I learned from this little experiment is that we don’t all have to have the same appearance or expression of identity, but we DO all share the same pedigree. We are all royal heirs of the King of Kings. His Spirit flows through each and every one of us. There have been many times where I’ve lost sight of this revelation, or I have a hard time accepting it for myself. When I feel lost, the quickest way to find security in who I am is to ask God that very question. “God, who do you say I am?” I am reminded of a couple of verses in the Bible that makes it quite clear who I am. In Galatians 2:20 it says, “I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” In John 14:20 it says, “On that day you will realize that I am in my father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” We carry the very identity of our God and savior. He said it Himself! When we can truly understand those verses, it takes away the “self” part of living. Everything you do is for Him through Him living within you.
How can this revelation shape culture? Well, you cannot give something away that you don’t possess. The point of shaping culture is for this ultimate goal: On earth as it is in Heaven. Earth is a weak representation of what Heaven is, but if Jesus found it important enough to pray to our Father for, it must be something that we work towards. You can shape the culture around you by showing the people within that culture what their identity is. Being a living example of Christ is the only way to expose truth. We cannot expose truth within a culture without showing the people in it who they are.
“We can shift culture by having real and lasting relationships.” - Bobby Houston. How can relationships shape culture? Relationships are built on trust. When people can trust you and can see the fruits of your life, it is more likely that they will want what you have spiritually. When people see that you are not fulfilled by material things or motivated by money, they start to wonder what is making your life so full. However, the most important relationship of all is the relationship that you have with Jesus. This should go without saying, but I’m constantly surprised by the little amount of time that we as a people spend on a daily basis with the Lord - how little time we spend abiding in His presence.
Abide. What does that mean? It means to continue without fading or being lost. When you abide in His presence, being with the Lord doesn’t fade. It’s not a short-term fad or diet plan. It’s not a New Year’s Resolution. It’s something that you partake in every single day. When you abide in the Lord’s presence you recognize that you are not only his heir, you are his Bride. How does a Bride respond to the Bridegroom? With deep love and adoration. The bride wants to spend time with her bridegroom, she wants what he wants. They build an intimate relationship of trust. This is the exact relationship that we should have with Jesus. A daily connection, building of trust, wanting what He wants. As this process happens, God will begin to unfold revelation to you that He may or may not be sharing with others. These revelations are what shape culture. When you build a lasting relationship with Christ and you build relationships with people around you, they begin to intertwine and the goal becomes that the people around you start looking like Jesus. You are teaching them how to look like Him. Out of that overflow, they will teach the same thing to the people around them. If we all spent time actively seeking the Lord and His will, how different this world would look! Let the overflow of the Lord in your life be your authenticity, and with that authenticity, become a culture shaper - a world changer.