It is very common to hear people say they’re trying to “find themselves,” to discover their identity. As I’ve attempted to understand exactly what that means, it seems to be a result of the self-focus, which is indicative of today’s humanistic, post-modern society.

And it also seems to be a way of expressing our innermost need to know our individual lives do have some meaning, that we have a purpose in being here. We’re not some gigantic coincidence of nature. That the joy and pain and happiness and suffering and peace and turmoil we experience are all part of some understandable plan.

The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 1 that every person is born with a God-consciousness:

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse (Romans 1:20).

Everyone knows instinctively there has to be a Master Planner, and our existence has to have more meaning than a haphazard coincidence. However, until we know God through Jesus Christ, that master plan remains a mystery. What else is there for a person who doesn’t know Christ except to try anything they can to discover who they are, why they are, and what their existence means.

The great news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is we all belong here. No Christ-follower needs to go around looking for an identity. God’s Word gives us clear answers. Once you’ve been born from above, you know you are a child of God, created by him in an orderly, planned process. He knows and cares for you individually. You are important to him; therefore, your life has meaning.

As you go out into the world each day, be aware of the people around you who are trying to find who they are because they don’t know Jesus. Be ready to share with them this great and glorious truth, that our lives have meaning when we are rightly related to God through Jesus.