Your Identity: Who Do You Say That You Are?

Have you ever caught yourself thinking, “I am a misfit,” “I am no good,” or even, “I am unwanted”? Maybe these words have slipped into your mind after a tough day, or perhaps you’ve heard them echoed in the world around you—in songs, in conversations, or scrolling through social media. If so, you’re not alone. These painful declarations are heartbreakingly common, and I want to address them today. 

Recently, as I was waiting on the Lord for guidance regarding what to share with you, I sensed a gentle but piercing question: “Who do you say that you are?” It caught me off guard. I could easily list my roles, my accomplishments, and even the ways God has worked in my life. I know who I am in the Lord. But the silence that followed nudged me deeper into words that need to be shared. Maybe you’ve felt that same silence, that invitation to look beyond the surface and ask, “Who am I, really? And even more importantly, who am I to God?”

When the World Tells You Otherwise

It’s so easy to internalize the negative voices around us. The world can be harsh, and our journeys are often marked by hurt, pain, rejection, and moments where we feel utterly lost or unworthy. If you’ve ever felt this way, I want you to know that these feelings, while real, are not the final word on your story. There are truths about you—eternal truths—that can rewrite every negative narrative you’ve ever heard or believed about yourself.

1. I Am Loved

Let’s begin with the most foundational truth: you are loved. Not just in a fleeting, imperfect human way—but with a love that is perfect, unwavering, and eternal. Our time on earth is brief, but the love God has for us stretches beyond time itself. No matter what you’ve faced—trauma, criticism, isolation, or betrayal—God’s love is bigger. It is a love that heals, comforts, and completes you in ways nothing and no one else can.

God’s Word is full of reminders of this love:

  • Jeremiah 31:3: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.”
  • Isaiah 49:15: “Can a woman forget her nursing-child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.“
  • Jeremiah 1:5: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you.”

God’s thoughts about us are eternal. He has always had a vision for our lives, grounded in love. Even when others let us down, God’s love remains. He never keeps score of our failures or disappointments. Instead, He calls us His own, again and again. As Job beautifully declared, “You have granted me life and steadfast love, and your care has preserved my spirit.” (Job 10:10-12)

This is an excerpt from St. Maria Faustina Kowalska’s Diary Divine Mercy in My Soul, entry #1692:

  • When I received Holy Communion, I said to Him, “Jesus, I thought about You so many times last night,” and Jesus answered me, “And I thought of you before I called you into being.” “Jesus, in what way were You thinking about me?” “In terms of admitting you to My eternal happiness.” After these words, my soul was flooded with the love of God. I could not stop marveling at how much God loves us.

 

2. I Am Beautiful

The second truth I want you to hold close is this: you are beautiful—not in the way the world measures beauty, but in the way the Creator of the universe sees you. You are a masterpiece crafted in God’s image. There is no flaw in the way He made you.

  • Song of Solomon 4:7: “You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you.”
  • Psalm 139:14: “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are your works; and that my soul knows very well.”
  • Genesis 1:26-27: “Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness…’ So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God, he created them; male and female, he created them.”

Our culture is obsessed with outward appearance and quick fixes. Sites like TikTok and Instagram are loaded with ads of beauty products and injections to make us feel beautiful inside and out. But real beauty is found in embracing the truth that we reflect God’s creative genius and divine dignity. No product or trend can add to what God has already declared about each of us. You are unique, precious, and irreplaceable. Your smile, your laugh, your quirks—every detail is a reflection of God’s handiwork.

 

3. I Am Forgiven

This third truth is one I know many struggle to accept: you are forgiven. Every one of us has made mistakes, fallen short, and carried regrets. But God’s forgiveness is bigger than our failures. His mercy covers every sin, every shame, every dark moment. When you turn to Him and sincerely repent, and bring your sins to the Sacrament of Reconciliation, He happily and gratefully washes you clean and gives you a fresh start.

  • Isaiah 1:18: “Come now, let us argue it out, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.”
  • Jeremiah 31:34: “No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.”
  • 1 John 1:19: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
  • John 20:22 (The Institution of the Sacrament of Reconciliation) He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

Even as Jesus hung on the Cross, He pleaded for our forgiveness: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). That is the depth of God’s love and mercy for us. No matter how far we feel we’ve fallen, God’s grace is deeper still. We are never beyond His reach or His redemption. Jesus continuously takes our sins upon Himself and pleads to the Father for our forgiveness. 

Let God’s Truth Wash Over You

Right now, wherever you are, I invite you to let these truths settle into your heart. Let God’s healing love, beauty, and forgiveness make you whole. Speak these words over yourself, not as wishful thinking, but as declarations of who you truly are in God’s eyes:

I am a beautiful part of God’s creation. I am unique, special, and loved. There is no other soul who is an exact replica of me. No one smiles like me, talks like me, walks like me, or has the exact number of hairs on their head as I do. No one thinks like me or has my creativity, talents, hobbies, and skills. No one laughs like me or has the same qualities and disposition as I. God loves me, and I allow God to wash over me with His Love and Will. My free will is my own, and I surrender my free will to Jesus for the Father to unite my will with His and make us one. I am complete in the Lord. I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me. I am forgiven. I am loved. I am beautiful. I am the apple of God’s eye and the masterpiece of His Creation. This is me.

If today’s message spoke to your heart, or if you want to share your own story or questions, I’d love to hear from you. You are never alone in this journey. Together, let’s continue to embrace who we truly are—loved, beautiful, and forgiven.

Amanda Dcosta - Pastoral Counselor, Herbalist and Author

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Who Is Contributor Amanda Dcosta?

My name is Amanda Dcosta, but most people around me call me Mandy. Hearing “AMANDA!” used to give me the fleeting impression I was in trouble—reminiscent of childhood mischief or grades being handed out in school—a feeling that amusingly lingered even into young adulthood. Don’t get me wrong, I embrace both names. Amanda means “beloved,” and I’ve always felt deeply loved by my family, by friends, and most of all, by God. Even during moments of doubt, I hold fast to the truth that I am loved. Knowing that God loves me gives me joy, the kind of joy that is my strength, the kind that is a gift and a choice, even in the absence of happiness.

Growing up, I was never afraid of adventure or a little mischief. Fear was never an option for my siblings and me. If a competition was announced, we would be the first to raise our hands, even to give speeches in languages we weren’t fluent in (after learning the speeches by heart).

Jesus has always been my anchor, support, strength, and fulcrum upon which many of my life’s decisions balanced, though I’ve made mistakes and had to find my way back to Him. Nevertheless, prayer remained the heartbeat of my life. I remember Fr. Marcelino, an Italian priest who brought the charismatic movement to our parish in 1979. He told me not to be afraid to soar high like an eagle. Intertwining my thumbs together, he turned my hands inside out to make them look like a bird with outspread wings. This was when I was four.

From those early years, it became a habit for my family to pray with our hands stretched out, and to praise and thank God aloud. Singing and recognizing the gifts of the Holy Spirit were big parts of who we were growing up. From daily Bible readings after the recitation of the Rosary to my first locution at seven, these moments shaped my spiritual foundation. The gift of prophecy became my help later in life when I encountered situations involving witchcraft or the occult around me, and continues to be one of my tools of discernment and direction.

My life has been a tapestry of adventures—physical, spiritual, and emotional. I’ve learned the value of fortitude and the beauty of being adventurous in prayer. As Jesus told St. Faustina Kowalska, we do not receive much because we do not ask for much. I am learning to ask boldly, trusting that with God, nothing is impossible. Since embracing the Divine Will way of life, I have seen prayers answered in ways that remind me of a little girl who has her Father wrapped around her little finger. In faith, I ask for anything in Jesus’ name and claim it, knowing that the Father delights in answering His children.

Three years ago, inspired and encouraged by my spiritual director, Fr. Toni Jacob, I stepped into pastoral counseling. With certification and guidance, I now counsel people both in person and online. Alongside counseling, my love for writing and reading, especially the Word of God, continues to grow. I may have been terrible at outdoor sports—I could never run to save my life—but I run the race of faith with all my heart. My goal and ardent prayer is to be a saint in the way God intends, and I wish to help as many people as possible come to know and love God, too.

 

If you would like to set up phone or video appointments for pastoral counseling and/or wellness counseling, Amanda (Mandy) can be reached at mandy12oct@gmail.com.
Amanda Dcosta was born to a Catholic family in Virapandianpatnam (please don’t try to pronounce that) in India; today, she shuttles between India and Oman, a nation on the southeast tip of Saudi Arabia. Her native tongue is English. Naturally gifted as a life coach, and as a pastoral and wellness counselor, she supplemented her gifts with a Certificate Course in Counseling through Osmania University, India, in April 2024, and an intensive Life Coach training. Amanda has also received two years of supervision at the Pastoral Orientation Center in Ernakulam, Kerala, India, under Fr. Toni Jacob, the head of the POC Theological Institute, who refers clients to her for pastoral counseling.
Amanda uses her broad education to help the body heal, as well as the soul. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in botany from Mahatma Gandhi University in Kerala, a Master’s Diploma in Hospital Management from the Indian Institute of Management Studies, and a Master’s Certification in Project Management at the Indira Gandhi National Open University—all in India. For over a decade, Mrs. Dcosta worked as an online botany journalist and served as Botany Editor for an online academic writing company. She co-authored the book, Encyclopedia of Cultivated Plants, 2013, and is a graduate of the Australian School of Herbal Medicine program.

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