Happy Friday, everyone! You know, many of us want to grow, to change, all to get better. But we often go about it in the wrong way. James Clear, in his book, Atomic Habits, describes change like peeling an onion. You see, there are three layers. He explains the outer layer is outcomes — what you want to get: losing weight, or getting promoted, or reaching a goal.

The middle layer is process. It’s what you do. It’s working out, waking up earlier, forming better habits overall. But it is the deepest layer that is identity — what you believe about yourself and who you are. All three levels matter, but real, lasting change starts from the inside out. And here’s where many of us struggle. We still feel like the old version of ourselves.

We remember what we’ve done. We hear echoes of who we were. We carry names that shame gave us. And even when we’re in Christ, we often still think we’re not. But Scripture says something different. In 1 Corinthians 6, Paul lists a string of broken identities, “Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards or slanderers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

But then he says, “And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by the Spirit of our God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11) That is what “you were” he says— not who you are. In Christ, we are no longer defined by our worst day or our weakest moment.

We’re called to replace that false identity — the one we inherited from sin, shame, and the world, and the one that we have oftentimes marred and scarred with our own bad choices — to exchange all of that and accept our true identity from Jesus, the one we were always meant for. We’re now redeemed, recreated, forgiven — not just changed, but made new.

So today, don’t just chase better outcomes. Don’t just build better habits. This weekend, start by living from your truest self — the self that has been recreated, redeemed, and saved. The one you were always created to be, in Jesus.

Prayer
Lord, we confess how easy it is to live like we’re still the old version of ourselves. Help us to believe what You say is true — that we are washed, sanctified, justified, and made new. And let our habits flow from this new identity that we have in You. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.