Run From Who You’re Not

Read

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!”

Think

Every runner knows that what you wear matters. Shoes that don’t fit. Gear that weighs you down. Layers you should’ve ditched at mile one. The wrong outfit can ruin the whole run. And yet—so many of us try to run the race of faith while still wearing identities that don’t belong to us.

We wear shame from old mistakes. We carry labels other people gave us. We rehearse lies like: I’m not enough. I’ll never change. I’m too far gone. And the result? Exhaustion. Frustration. Stumbling through life trying to prove something Jesus already settled.

But Paul says something radically freeing: the old is gone. The new is here. In Christ, you are not becoming a better version of the old you—you are becoming someone entirely new.

That doesn’t mean you won’t struggle. It means your struggle doesn’t define you. Too often, we live like we’re running for an identity—trying to earn love, worth, approval. But the gospel flips that: we run from identity. From the deep-down, already-secure truth that we are loved, chosen, and free. Not because we’re crushing it, but because Jesus already did.

Charles Spurgeon once said, “You stand before God as if you were Christ, because Christ stood before God as if he were you.” That’s the trade. That’s the truth. And that’s what lets you finally drop the weight of who you’re not.

What old identity is trying to lace up and run with you today? What label, lie, or lingering regret are you still carrying? You don’t have to run with that anymore. It’s not yours.

Apply

What’s one false identity or lie you’ve been believing about yourself lately? Write it down. Now, next to it, write what’s actually true in Christ. Loved. Forgiven. Chosen. New. Take time to pray those truths over yourself today—and run like someone who knows who they are.

Pray

Lord, thank you that I don’t have to earn an identity—I’ve already received one in you. Help me lay down the old labels and lies that weigh me down. Remind me of who I am because of what you’ve done. Let me run from that truth today—with joy, with freedom, and with nothing to prove. In Jesus’ name. Amen.