God Is More Concerned About Who You Are Than What You Do

“There are two ways to look at life: what you do determines who you are, or who you are determines what you do.”

My pastor spoke these words to a group of middle and high school students and their leaders who were gathered for a summer camp experience. He went on to explain that God is all about the second option: who you are determines what you do. It was a talk that blew our minds. But more than that, it blew the chains off our hearts and set us free to live life in a different way.

Let me explain.

Imagine, if you will, an idyllic farm: a cute little farm house, a big red barn, lots of animals. From a distance, you hear the noises of the various animals combining in a cacophony of sound. But as you get closer, you begin to realize something’s not quite right. Is that horse clucking like a chicken? And those sheep… are they neighing? That duck is definitely mooing. What is going on?

This is actually a scene from an animated kids’ show I saw once. The farmer arrives home to a farm full of animals all acting like each other instead of themselves. They’ve been doing it so long, they can’t remember what they’re actually supposed to sound like. Patiently, the farmer works with each animal, one by one, reminding them which animal they are and then re-teaching them their true sounds (using “Old McDonald had a Farm,” of course).

Watching this five-minute scene play out, I had an epiphany.

I had been my living life like a horse who thought it was a chicken.

In fact, I’d been doing it so long, I was convinced I was a chicken. But God knew better. He knew my true identity and was working to reveal it to me by teaching me what it means to be a horse. This can be a painful process because it requires admitting you’ve been wrong. It helped when I realized God wasn’t showing me how to be a horse because He would love me more that way. He was doing it because I am a horse. And who I am should determine what I do. Life is better when you’re living it as you were meant to.

Paul puts it this way: “Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children” (Eph. 5:1 NLT).

Who you are (dear children) determines what you do (imitate God). How you act, how you think, how you speak. Everything you do should be an attempt to imitate God. And when it isn’t, He’ll correct you—not because it’s bad, but because it isn’t who you are.

Is this idea as freeing for you as it is for me? Be the dearly loved child you were created to be. Know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is your identity. The rest will follow.

Katie Mumper is a daughter, sister, friend, writer, and singer. She loves Jesus, music, books, and great TV shows. Because she’s far from perfect, she is grateful for God’s grace in her life. She writes with the hope that others might be encouraged to let God make them new as well. You can read more of her work at beautyrestored.me.

Photograph used with permission from, and copyright of, Michelle Lenger.