In Kristine Pappas’ book, Widow for a Season, she writes that in order for one to find their identity in Christ, one must find surrender and receive Him as Lord and Savior.
God has accomplished our salvation with the peace and power that accompanies it through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. But we must choose whether we want His salvation.
We choose salvation because we want to spend eternity with Jesus Christ. If we do not choose to receive Christ, we will spend eternity in hell with Satan and his host of fallen angels (Matt. 25:41). The torment of hell is not just hot fire or suffering, it is being totally separated from God and Christ forever.
To accept Christ, we must acknowledge we are sinners and recognize we are without hope. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) and “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).
We must repent of our sins, confess that Jesus is Lord, and believe that God raised Him from the dead. “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation (Romans 10:9-10).
If this is the leading of your heart, pray the following prayer (or use similar words).
God, I want to find my identity in you. I realize I am sinful and without hope. I repent of my sins and confess that you are Lord. I recognize that salvation comes only through Your Son, Jesus Christ, and today I accept Him and commit to following Him forever. Please receive me as Your child.
If you have sincerely prayed that prayer, you are now a child of God, and your identity is in Christ. Find a good Bible-teaching church–perhaps the one from which you obtained this paper–and begin the lifelong discovery of the delights of being a Christian–a believer.