I know my identity...
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I know the difference between the false self and the true self.
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So why would I need to spend more time reading about it?
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That’s exactly what I thought two or three years ago when someone first told me to read Living Fearless by Jamie Winship.
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Then, earlier this year, it happened again.
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“You’ve got to read and listen to Jamie…”
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I listened to his Identity Camp series, and something deep inside me woke up.
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Over the last five months, I’ve spent more than a hundred hours listening to Jamie’s sermons and teachings. I’m wrapping up his Becoming What You Believe cohort, and later this fall I’ll attend Catalyst training to go deeper into inner healing.
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Before I became a full-time coach, I was a vocational pastor.
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John Eldredge was the first author—24 years ago—who stirred my hunger for a deeper communion with God through his book Wild at Heart. This was my first exposure to identity and walking with God. (Side note: it was recommended to me by my chiropractor in Lubbock, TX. Never underestimate your influence in the workplace.)
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But the truth is, serving in a dogmatic tradition as a vocational pastor with shame-based tendencies and an undercurrent of works righteousness only fueled my pride, self-righteousness, and “nice guy” ways -- ie: religion. (I can only see this in the rear-view mirror now.)
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In 2012, I attended Wild at Heart Bootcamp, and I told John afterward, “Thank you for showing me what it means to pray.”
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Now, 13 years later, I’m learning a new layer of prayer, intimacy with Jesus, and walking with God.
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This is the slow and beautiful journey of growing in the Lord. But sometimes I still ask—why does it take so long?
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There’s a mystery in a relationship with Jesus that far transcends our knowing and doing. As Paul wrote, “…and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.” (Colossians 3:10). In His compassion, God sees us as becoming more like His Son.
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Wherever you are on your spiritual journey, here’s what I’m learning: the more I inquire of the Lord and ask Him to show me, the more He reveals Himself—often in ways that stretch far beyond my understanding of Scripture and help reframe what it means to become wholehearted.
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God has given me a glimpse of a new identity this summer, and it is reflective of the beach picture. It is one of those moments that I am still learning what it means. It is the practice of learning to use your creative mind to have the mind of Christ. It is redemptive and moves me forward with greater clarity.

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