In Christ, Simply Being

I was emailing a fellow sufferer, Danielle, the other day. I met Danielle in a support group for those dealing with chronic pain, illness, and grief. From our first email exchange, I knew she could be part of my tribe! She always responded with such grace and reassurance, leaning into the sufferer’s pain.

“Sorry to hear of your pain and struggle.”

“I would like to pray for you during this time, if you feel comfortable. Could you please remind me of the dates?”

While we don’t email often, her name popping up in Outlook always brings a smile of anticipation!

Danielle is far too well acquainted with dōlightful living. She knows intimately a broken body and understands chronic grief. As we emailed last week, I asked her what her favorite ‘In Christ, I am’ statement was.

Her answer set me on a path of deep contemplation as I continued pondering my identity in Christ.

“You asked such a great question to ponder,” Danielle responded. “It is very difficult to pick just one thing. I could say so many things, but just for this day, as I look at your question, I choose to see the question as my answer. In Christ, I AM. For without Christ, I would be nothing. Four simple words with unfathomable complexities.”

Unfathomable complexities.

Beautiful realities.

Tenuous trust.

In Christ, I am.

In Christ, I exist.

In Christ, I rest.

Identity is a vital part of human emotion. Deep down in each of us is an aching to find the answer to “Who am I?” My daughter is currently working on a genealogy project with her American Heritage Girls Troop. This has been an emotional project since ND is adopted. Knowing little about her biological family, we went back to her original adoption decree. This decree officially changed her name and made her my daughter with all the rights and responsibilities given. Much discussion about bloodlines and adoption has happened over these last few weeks. Identity has certainly been a recurring theme in our home. We’ve studied the Henson ancestors, tracing back to her great-great-great-grandparents. She loves hearing the stories of the past. It roots her in a vast space of “available identity” while she grows to uncover her own identity in the coming years.

And that, my sweet souls, is what Christ is for me. In the vast space of the world’s identity options, the foundation of who I am is a personal, vibrant, communicative relationship with Jesus Christ. During my thirty-three-year friendship with my Lord, being “in Christ” has become the foundation of my identity.

I asked my nine-year-old what it meant to her to be in Christ. “It means to me that you are a child of God through and through. That it’s part of your DNA. It means to me, if you believe in Him and want to know Him more, you try to be like Him.”

Pastor and author John Piper agrees. “To live is Christ is to show that Christ is magnificent.” Paul echoes, “Whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake, I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” Piper continues, “So again, ‘to live is Christ’ means to live in such a way as to make Christ look magnificent as your supreme. The key to magnifying Christ in life and in death is to find Him more precious, more valuable, more satisfying, more joyful, more boast-worthy than everything we lose in death—‘to die is gain’—and everything we have in life—‘to live is Christ.’”

Some theologians estimate over two hundred New Testament references to a Christian’s identity as being “in Christ.” The “unfathomable complexities,” as Danielle said, are abundant. The beautiful realities, when realized, create a tenuous trust in our identity in Christ.

“The Big Idea: When you are in Christ, all that is true of Him changes what is true of you.” All those in Christ now have the status of being known as His own and a personal relationship with Jesus Christ to solidify it.

We are ‘in’ Christ. Like ice in water, we become surrounded by Jesus Christ. It is this being in Christ that we find protection from the realities of this world. In Christ, we rest. We breathe. We are.

In a world that demands actions to validate one’s value, Jesus Christ says, be in Me. Rest in Me. You do not need to prove or strive. Just be.

Porter’s Gate has a song often played on repeat around our home: “Take it easy. God already loves you completely. Take it easy. Rest in the shade of His wings. Lay down your burdens and rest for a while. The Shepherd who seeks you is gentle and kind. There’s nothing to pay for and nothing to earn. And nothing you have to become. Lay down the scales where you weigh out your life. The measures are empty, just leave them behind. The distance between His two hands are enough to tell you the depths of His love.”

So, cherished companions, are you in Christ? Have you accepted His identity as your own as heir of Christ? If you have questions about becoming one of God’s children and confidently knowing that you are “in Christ,” I invite you to email me!

But if you are securely confident in your friendship in Christ, I urge you to rest in His identity.  Take it easy. Breathe in Christ. Be in Christ. Rest in Christ.  He is enough.

As I close today’s musings, I pray you feel encouraged and inspired to explore the profound truth of being "in Christ.” Understanding our place in Him is a foundational truth and a vibrant journey of discovery. In the coming weeks, I pray we’ll discover specific ways to live out our identity in Christ, uncovering practical and deeply personal truths for our daily lives.

Stay tuned, dear hearts, as we unravel what it truly means to be in Christ and how this shapes our every moment. Until then, “Take it easy. God already loves you completely.”