“I have chosen you and have not cast you away: Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:9-10
Recently a friend of mine shared a Chinese story with me based on a true story about a girl who was promised to marry a man of great wealth and influence. She was raised and groomed to be this man’s wife and was told how privileged and special she was from an early age to be chosen to be his wife.
However, right before they were to be married, this man was taken by traffickers and sold into trafficking in the United States. This man and woman never actually met, but due to the Chinese culture and custom, she was still legally “married” to this man even though he was gone. She lived in the wealth of his household and had access to all he owned.
A few years later, she too was taken captive and sold into trafficking in the United States. However, no matter how badly others treated her, she remained confident of who she was and her true identity. She knew this was not her own doing, but it was being done to her and it could not define her. Her identity had been set at a young age and she knew who she truly was, a daughter destined for greatness and deserving of privilege and honor. She was beaten, abused in horrific ways, looked down upon, disgraced, and rejected. Still, her dignity and honor remained unscathed. Nothing shook her identity or security.
There is more to this story and who knows how much is true, but her secure position of identity in the midst of great pain, suffering, and injustice was remarkable.
Identity or lack of identity set in our youth greatly impacts the security of our future.
In this story, her secure foundation of identity in the value of who she was defined her even in the midst of horrific circumstances.
In most of our stories, the opposite happens. Often the stories I hear involve neglect, abandonment, sexual abuse, physical abuse, and/or emotional abuse. In these stories, secure identity was not set at an early age. The trauma endured has set a course of responses in life. So much so that as we enter into adulthood, our circumstances can change and everything in our life can seem healthy and normal, but our emotional reactions and lack of identity set at an early age can cause us to be insecure even in the middle of the most secure relationships and circumstances.
What is the cure for this? How can an entire upbringing lacking in the most basic essentials of human emotional needs, and negative horrific harmful behaviors be undone so we can be secure? How can we live in our good new normal and enjoy the blessings God has given us? Will we ever stop being triggered from the trauma of our past?
The cure for insecurity is security.
Yes, I know that sounds possibly too simple but so many biblical truths are simple truths.
The cure for insecurity is security in Christ. Letting Christ be our rock, strong tower, mighty fortress, and the anchor for our soul is vital in our search for security.
One verse to start with in building up security is Isaiah 41:9-10:
“I have chosen you and have not cast you away: Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Each of these sentences is a rich promise from the Lord:
I have chosen you.
I have not cast you away.
Fear not, I am with you.
Be not dismayed (distressed when the unexpected happens)
I am your God.
I will strengthen you.
Yes, I will help you.
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (What security! To know He is holding you up!)
As my friend and the founder of Hope-Redefined, Lyschel Burkett, stated, “This verse changes the way I show up in the world.”
To be able to show up in the world knowing you are chosen by the One who formed the Universe and know He is for you is a big yet humbling esteem booster.
May we not grab onto anything of this world to define who we are and our true identities. Abortion, abuse, affairs, addiction, abandonment, or anything else can define us without our agreement. We can choose to refuse to agree with what the world would have us believe and instead choose to agree with the One who created the world with His Words.
Chosen one, He will not cast you away. Do not be distressed. He is your God and He will strengthen you. He will help you and hold you up so you won’t fall. Be secure in His security.
Today, here is prayer you can pray to build up security in Him…
Father, thank you that you have chosen me, that you do not cast me away. Thank you that you are with me, and that you are mine and I am yours. Father, thank you for strengthening me and helping me and holding me up so I don’t fall. Thank you for making me secure in your security. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.