True to You

READ: PSALM 119:9-16, 105; JOHN 14:5-6, 16-18

Have you ever heard the advice, “Be true to yourself,” and wondered, But what does that mean? How can you be true to yourself if you’re not one-hundred-percent sure who you are yet? After all, you’re still learning and growing—not just in your teen years but throughout your whole life. As you make choices about what to do for your education and career, if and who you will marry, what values your family will reflect, where you will live, and everything in between, these choices will influence the person you become.

If you feel confused about “being true to yourself,” know that you’re not alone. I found it hard to know what choices to make every day to be true to myself when I didn’t know for sure who I was to become. Still, I had an advantage in figuring it out: I had put my trust in Jesus. My identity is first and foremost that I am a child of God, because Jesus died and rose again to forgive me and make me part of His family.

Once I recognized the identity I already held, choices to be true to myself became easier. The Bible, which is God’s words to all of us, gives a lot of guidance about good and bad choices for those who want to follow Jesus Christ. As we look forward to spending eternity with Him on the new heavens and new earth, our decisions should reflect that hope. When we look to Jesus in making daily choices, we find that He sheds light on the path forward (Psalm 119:105). When we dig into God’s Word, we start discovering who we are—and we see that, ultimately, our identity is defined by our relationship to Him. In Christ, we are fully loved and forgiven. The fact that Jesus Christ is “the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6) begins to permeate our very being. He is worth giving ourselves over to and being true to. • Ronica Stromberg

• When you’re in a confusing situation, how do you decide what to do? Can you think of a time when God’s Word, the Bible, helped you decide? What was that like?

• If we’ve put our trust in Jesus, we are new people—we are dead to sin, and we have the Holy Spirit living in us, guiding and empowering us (Romans 6:8-12; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 5:16-26). Who are trusted Christians in your life who can remind you of your identity in Christ, help you discern God’s guidance, and help you live in ways that honor God and reflect His love—even when it’s hard?

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. Psalm 119:105 (NIV)