Broken - The Impostor

It is important for us to look at some aspects of the impostor self, the false self, that is created out of our brokenness and our wounds. Before we do, we need to first know what the true self is. The true self can be defined by the fact that:

• God created us for union with Himself.
• The true self answers the question, ‘Who am I?’ with ‘ I am one loved by Christ.’
• Our true identity rests in God’s relentless tenderness for us revealed in Christ Jesus.

When I first thought through this, I thought that there had to be more. I came to the realization that there are things that would flow from this, but everything that is true about who we are, or who we were made to be, stems from the fact that God LOVES us and created us for union and fellowship with Him. We are the ones loved by God. That’s it.

Some thoughts about the impostor self. All of these may not apply to you, but some will. Praying Psalms 139:23 for you as you read this. “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.”


The impostor:

1. Is part of you. We are not talking about some type of schizophrenia or multiple personalities. This “false self” or “false identity” is part of you. Why is this important? Because if you hate the false self, you hate you. You hate yourself. The goal here is not to hate yourself. The goal is to identify the false self, the impostor, call him/her out of hiding, give them a hug, say ‘I love you, but it’s time for you to go away!’

2. Is a liar. The impostor is not based on truth and honesty. When operating in your false self, you do not deal in truth, about the way you feel, about your desires, about the direction you want to go. You simply cover up your feelings and go on about your business, trying to ignore the wound or brokenness. This causes you to not be your true self or embrace your true identity. What are you refusing to deal with right now that your impostor is trying to cover up? Come out of hiding and let’s deal with the issue.

3. Is not prone to peace. When you embrace the true self, one who is loved by Christ continually, there is extreme freedom! The opposite of this is extreme conflict, which comes when dealing with the impostor. If you are not at a point of peace and freedom in your life, that is an indication that you need to address your wound and the impostor self that has formed to try and cope with the wound.

4. Is lazy, resisting the effort intimacy with God requires. Have you ever decided that you need to pray, and then as you begin, struggle with what and how to pray? Beware of the impostor! Another symptom of this is the delay in entering into times of prayer and intimacy with God. If you are struggling to find time to pray and worship alone, this is then another sign of a false self that you need to deal with. God created us to have union and fellowship with Him, and we need to address any barriers to that.

5. Can be consumed with busyness. Are you consumed with scheduling yourself 24/7? This is definitely not the design God had for us. “Be still and know that I am God.” Also, we see in Scripture repeatedly that Jesus went away alone to pray. We need to do the same.
But why don’t we? Why are we lazy? Why are we consumed with busyness? Because we know that if we spend time alone with God, He will want to deal with our issues, with our wounds. And we do not want to go there. We would rather speak with God from a distance and not bring up the hurt. But God has different plans for you. He wants to heal you! Set aside the laziness and busyness today.

6. Affects the way we approach relationships. There seem to be two ways this will go in a person’s life:
a. Preoccupied with acceptance and approval. To gain acceptance and approval, the false self suppresses or camouflages true feelings. Instead, feelings and actions that are needed to gain acceptance and approval are the ones that are projected.
b. Or says that “I don’t need anybody else. I’m fine on my own.” This is especially true if there is a history of rejection or broken trust. Instead of letting people in, you keep people at a distance, because if you don’t let them in, they can’t hurt you. This is not the design God intended for us.

7. Has difficulty with intimacy in relationships. This intimacy indicates a deep, closely personal relationship. The impostor really struggles with this. If you find yourself having difficulty having a closely personal relationship with those close to you, this is a sign of the false self.

8. Can be defined by what he does. Similar to being busy, some impostors are defined by what they do, by their job or their work. Do you find yourself consumed by your career path, job title, company you work for, etc.?

Whatever form your impostor(s) take, it is time to call them out of hiding, so you can find the true self God intended for you. And so you can heal.