Blog
Who You Say I Am:
Worship as a Reminder of Identity

NorthPointe Christian’s Spiritual Life Director, Matt Bell, develops schedules for chapels, Spiritual Emphasis Weeks, and discipleship groups. The goal of these programs is to strengthen students in their walk with Jesus Christ. On occasion, Mr. Bell plans worship chapels, where a theme dictates the Scripture, songs, and activities the students, faculty and staff participate in.

In a worship chapel this past school year, Mr. Bell focused on the idea of identity, breaking the chapel into three sections: Who You Are, Who I Am Not, Who I Am.

Who You Are

In the first portion of chapel, Mr. Bell focused on who God revealed Himself to be. What is true about God? What should we understand about his character? Based on these questions, faculty took turns reading Scripture passages that answer and illustrate these questions. 

Who I Am Not

After discussing God’s identity and character, Mr. Bell redirected students to consider who they are not, specifically examining the lies students believe about themselves. Whether mentally or from an outside source (such as a friend or family member), each person is fed painful lies that play on repeat in their mind. When people believe lies, their identity becomes distorted.

Following this brief reflection about lies, Mr. Bell invited students to take a piece of paper, write down the lies they believe about themselves, and stick it on a board as a symbol of ‘putting away’ the lie.

Who I Am

Once the students had ‘put away’ the lies about their identity, Mr. Bell reminded students of their identity in Jesus Christ. He offered students the following “I am” statements to repeat, reflect upon, and cling to as they consider their identity in Christ:

• I am a child of God
• I am complete in Christ
• I am new in Christ
• I have been bought with a price
• I am a part of Christ’s body
• I have direct access to God
• I have been redeemed and forgiven
• I am free from any condemnation
• I cannot be separated from the love of God
• I am a citizen of the kingdom of heaven
• I am salt and light in this world
• I am a branch connected to the true Vine
• I am God’s temple
• I am God’s masterpiece
• I am a child of God

In our digitally-saturated cultural moment, it is more important than ever to provide students with recurring reminders about their identity in Jesus Christ, rather than being defined by worldly benchmarks and influences. We are thankful for teachers like Mr. Bell who intentionally employ chapel times to remind students of Christ’s identity and theirs!