Identity
The other day, I found myself sitting in the stylist’s chair, gazing dulcetly into the eyes of one of the top Drag Queens of Calgary. Life, as they say, is unaccountably strange. As events were shaping up in that direction, I could have stopped them, but for some inexplicable reason, I just went with the flow. Every now and again, it’s good to step out of your comfort (even conviction) zone. l laid aside my prejudice and just went for it.
This man runs his business out of his home in a very fashionable quarter of the city. Being ushered into the room, I could see that it was also his sewing work-room, complete with a showy (un-ignorable) sequined gown on a mannequin. The walls had various photos telling a clear story of his identity and priority. There was plenty to engage conversation, and the setting seemed deliberately provocative, but I can be blithe.
It was a very mild, gentle, subdued exchange. We found a wavelength of respect without straining. I found him to be extremely polite, sensitive, humorous, soft-spoken and deep-feeling; obviously a lover of beauty. Until others intruded, the subject of his sexuality (gay) or interests (drag) never entered our exchange.
Frankly, the whole world of Drag completely confounds me. I am at a loss to know why a man is so discontent with being male that the extreme end of the Feminine becomes an utter fascination and obsession. I’m not sure anyone of them could actually, rationally, give you a reason, because according to spiritual precepts, it’s the manifestation of a conflux of unclean spirits (Leviticus 18:22-30, Leviticus 20, Deuteronomy 22, Revelation 21:8, 1 Corinthians 6:9, Galatians 5:20-21). These strongholds are spiritual, so looking for logic is useless. I would, however, have been very interested to engage that conversation, hearing an insider’s thoughts on such an over-the-top realm.
I’ve racked my brain to find some Biblical parallel as a guide for these situations. Jesus ministered mainly in the strict Jewish culture of Israel, so the issues of homosexuality, trans-gender mindsets or Drag culture do not directly enter His interactions. It’s difficult to even find a remote parallel. The closest I can come is the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus (Luke 19).
Remember the furor aroused, when, after great anticipation, the Lord entered Jericho? You can bet the highest echelons of synagogue and society were on the front lines to greet him. Imagine the shocked offense, as He walked right past them to call down from a tree, by name, Zacchaeus, infamous tax collector and outcast extraordinaire. Jesus basically invites Himself to the man’s house. Must have felt like winning the lottery!
Oh, to be a bug on the wall that afternoon. We can only guess at the ensuing interaction, as we are given only the sparsest of details. No indication of the nature of that exchange – only the results of it. Jesus healed his wounded, atrophied heart, affirming his identity as a child of God; a creature of intrinsic worth and destiny. Deep called unto deep. Yeshua shone the light of His presence and power on who Zacchaeus really was, and set him free from himself.
The secret that day, had to do with honor and identity. The latin root of this word “Idem” means ‘sameness, the quality of being identical, oneness’. It’s the grounding idea that we are formed in the image of God.
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.
How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! Psalm 139:14-17 NKJV
Long, long ago, in eternity, the Lord formed you. He gave you a life-tasking which you and He actually discussed together (Proverbs 8:22-31), and agreed upon. In the light of this, you were assigned a gender-package that best facilitated your destiny. Male or female, both were equally weighted.
Identity is the single-most taxing pilgrimage of our lives; a difficult and perilous journey. Time and age may reveal bedrock characteristics of personality, but the Word of God is the flawless mirror into which we gaze to understand our nature as spiritual beings long before our soul was encased in flesh.
Don’t be fooled by the cacophony of voices vying for attention; the current obsession with LGBTQ culture. Despite all the uproar, this is not a sexual issue. This is an identity issue. It's the problem facing someone who simply doesn't know who they are in God. People claw desperately to define themselves through the warped mirrors of human iniquity, fractured nuclear families, corrupted appetites run amok, and diseased world ideas about how to be significant. We are now seeing the result of several generations who have never grown up with Scripture to bestow upon them their preciousness.
Understand that Jesus, king of beauty, Lord of male and female, died for you. You are priceless and irreplaceable, and you don’t have to fight like a dog to prove it. You don’t need to shout it belligerently at the top of your voice. Rest.
You are the Beloved. Know this, and you understand identity. Fully grasp the your unique individuality, in the light of God’s tremendous, unstinting love for you. To embrace Identity is to embrace the divine tasking of your life while at the same time equally valuing the distinctive and often confounding differences of others.
Now we see in a mirror dimly, but then, we shall see face to face. Now, I know in part; but then shall I know, even as I am fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12
cb Photo by Bing
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