The Identity Prayer

When we don’t know what we’re called to do, insecurity consumes us. Without a sense of calling, we lack individual identity. And without identity, our lives become a mediocre cycle of conformity—blown around by the loudest voices, shaped by everyone else’s expectations, never quite sure who we are or why we’re here.

But here’s what most people miss: God has a pattern. He loves placing his most significant people in the anonymity of obscurity. And from that obscurity, he calls them to a world-changing purpose.

Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.

1 Corinthians 1:26-29 NIV

Look at the pattern throughout Scripture:

• Jacob was sent away to the outlying desert, and called to father a nation.
• Joseph was sold into slavery, forgotten in prison, and called to save nations.
• Moses was born in obscurity, fled to the desert, and called to deliver a people.
• David was a forgotten shepherd boy, and called by God from the sheep pens to the crown. 
• Esther was orphaned, placed in obscurity, and called for such a time as this.
• The apostles were fishermen, tax collectors, and nobodies, all called to change the world.

God does this a lot. He strategically places seemingly unremarkable people in unremarkable places—small towns, ordinary jobs, and anonymous lives. Not because they don’t matter, but because obscurity is where God does his development work.

Mary was called from obscurity.

The mother of Jesus was a young girl in a nothing town, engaged to a carpenter, with no clear calling or identity. Until one day, an angel showed up:

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Luke 1:26-28 NIV

What we each must understand is this: just like Mary, God loves and favors us. He wants to be with us as we walk through this life. But we, like Mary, must understand that when God comes looking for us, he often finds us in the anonymity of obscurity.

Mary was familiar with the stories I mentioned earlier, like Moses, Esther, and Joseph. She knew God’s pattern. So when the angel appeared, scripture says that Mary was troubled:

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God.”

Luke 1:29-30 NIV

Her fear was warranted. Because what came next changed everything:

You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.

Luke 1:31-33 NIV

In a moment, Mary learned the momentous nature of her calling and identity. She was called to be the mother of the Son of God, the Messiah, and raise him from birth to adulthood. No pressure, except that the future of the entire world would now depend on her faithfulness.

Rather than worrying about parenting skills, she first wondered about the mechanics:

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

Luke 1:34 NIV

Once God told her the Holy Spirit would be the author of this miracle, she said:

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Luke 1:38 NIV

For Mary, it was that simple: “I am called to serve God by giving birth to the Son of God, and my identity will forever be as the mother of the Son of God.” She had her calling. She had her identity. No longer would she be blown here and there by the opinions and preferences of society. She would be anchored in her calling and identity as the mother of the man who would change the world more than anyone before or after him.

Elizabeth was called from obscurity, too.

But Mary wasn’t the only one. Her relative Elizabeth had also been living in obscurity—barren, childless, and seemingly forgotten. Until God remembered her, too.

In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old… But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.”

Luke 1:5-7, 13 NIV

Elizabeth, like Mary, was called from obscurity to give birth to a world-changer. John the Baptist would prepare the way for Jesus. These two women—both forgotten, both unremarkable by the world’s standards—were both called by God to mother men who would change history.

The identity prayer changed everything.

And here’s the linchpin: Mary’s response wasn’t anxiety or fear. It was gratitude. Because she understood something profound: God had remembered her in her obscurity.

And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me—holy is his name.”

Luke 1:46-49 NIV

Do you see it? Mary expressed gratitude for three key things:

• God was mindful of the humble state of his servant (He remembered her in obscurity).
• God did great things for her (He gave her a calling and identity).
• She went from anonymous to eternally significant (“all generations will call me blessed”).

A prayer of gratitude comes when we listen for God’s call and embrace his identity for us. This is what creates a beautiful life.

Don’t you know that He who pursues and explores the human heart intimately knows the Spirit’s mind because He pleads to God for His saints to align their lives with the will of God? We are confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live according to His plan.

Romans 8:27-28 Voice

When we fail to have gratitude, it’s usually because we ignore, resist, or avoid God’s call. And in doing so, we miss out on the unwavering strength that comes from immovable identity, which is God’s gift to our lives.

Here on Christmas Day, let’s make it our goal to listen for and embrace God’s calling for our lives. Not as a momentary task, but as a permanent identity guiding our life’s purpose until completed. When we do, we will be like this psalmist:

Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.

Psalm 37:3-6 NIV

On this Christmas Day, let’s pray for our calling and embrace our identity. Then we can live our lives in gratitude—delighting in the God who guides us and gives us the desires of our hearts as we commit our way to him in pursuit of our destiny. As we do this, he will shine through our lives, lighting up this dark world so that many more people can discover God and find their purpose through his gift of identity.

Perception — Change how you see

“God, show me that my obscurity is not abandonment—it’s strategy. Let me perceive that being overlooked by the world doesn’t mean I’m forgotten by you. Open my eyes to see that you favor me, that you are with me, and that you have a calling for my life. Help me see that the anonymity I’ve experienced has been preparation, not punishment.”

Process — Change how you think

“God, transform the way I process my life. Help me stop measuring my significance by the world’s standards—influence, nobility, or visibility. Rewrite my understanding of what it means to be chosen: not the powerful, not the famous, but the humble, the lowly, the things that are not. Change how I think about my past: every unremarkable place, every ordinary job, every anonymous season has been part of your plan. Let me think like Mary: ‘I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled.’”

Purpose — Change what you live for

“God, free me to live in gratitude for the calling and identity you’ve given me. Show me that the purpose of receiving my calling is not just to accomplish tasks; it’s to anchor my identity in you so I’m no longer blown around by others’ opinions. Help me understand that when you remember me in my humble state and do great things for me, gratitude is the only response that makes sense. Let me live for this truth: my identity comes from your calling, and my gratitude comes from being chosen.”

Path — Change where you are going

“God, lead me on Mary’s path: listening for your call, embracing the identity you give, responding in gratitude. Give me the courage to say ‘I am the Lord’s servant’ when you call me to something that seems impossible. Show me the next step in the calling you’ve placed on my life. Let me walk in the strength of knowing who I am in you—not defined by my obscurity, but by your favor. Keep me anchored in calling. Keep me grounded in identity. Keep me overflowing with gratitude.”

A song for your playlist

“The First Noel” by *NSYNC:

Lyric highlight:

The first Noel the angels did say
was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;
in fields where they lay keeping their sheep,
on a cold winter’s night that was so deep.
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel,
born is the King of Israel.