Candid Conversation: Identity - Can it be a healing force?

When you think about God’s church, His people, and how we are representing Him in this world, how do you feel? Confused? Angry? Hopeful? Worried? Resigned? All of the above? How do you think God feels about it all?

As facilitators for Generational Trauma healing, we all see firsthand some of the challenges involved with helping each other see our own brokenness and guiding folks to the God who heals. Candid Conversations was started as a way bring white allies and people of color together to continue racial healing conversation and strengthen community as we do this work.

As we continue the conversations into 2022, the planning team sensed the need to return to a basic idea—identity. Identity forms the basis for almost all of the conflicts and divides we are experiencing in this present time. We believe it is absolutely critical that we answer the question we hear the Spirit asking: who do I say that you are? After Jesus’ question to Peter in Matthew 16, “Who do you say that I am?”, the question of who Jesus says we are and are called to be is of the utmost importance. Yes, we’re Black or white, male or female, single or married, etc. But what does it mean when we put ‘Christian’ in front of those identifiers?  Can identity be a healing force?

That’s what we want to dig deeply into with Candid Conversations.  Let’s work together in this scary, holy, powerful work.