Your Origin Story: God-Given Identity in GenesisSample

Origin stories aren’t just for superheroes.

Most of us equate origin stories with superheroes, as normal humans transform when given special powers. But origin stories existed far before comic books or movie theaters.

“Every culture tells of creation,
legend to the map of their expectation
of how we came to be,
why we are here,
if there is a God and if so,
how divine interactions will go.” (Jen Weaver, "Origin Stories" in A Beckoning to Wonder)

One story of the Egyptian sun god Ra says that his eye separated from him and resisted returning. In the struggle, the eye shed tears from which humans were born.

The Lenape Tribe told of a tortoise who rose out of the water. Dry ground formed, then a tree, which sprouted humans from its roots.

The Babylonian epic told of gods giving birth to younger gods, who all ended up in a shameful war. As they died, their corpses became aspects of creation. One defeated deity paid for his crime with his life, and the first man came from that god’s guilty blood.

Ancient Greeks tell a similar disturbing and anger-filled story, concluding with what seems an accidental occurrence of the first man, who sprung from the soil by himself.

Creation stories abound because deep questions about worth are hidden in each of our hearts. Beliefs about creation lay the foundation of a culture’s identity and worldview. These stories impart lessons to guide norms and values, including how we think of God.

Is God present and active? Angry and detached? Are we alone? Do humans come from love or sadness? Are we intended for war or peace?

We then repeat the story a zillion different times, in the ways a culture establishes itself, interacts with the world, and goes about daily life.

What story do you believe about who you are?

The story you believe about yourself matters, and it begins with what you believe about your origin. What we read in Genesis is true.

“God’s story
is not
fiction or fantasy
it is
remembrance.” (Jen Weaver, “Believing in Living” in A Beckoning to Wonder)

Where there was only black, inky void, in perfect unity and love, our three-in-one God generously brought order and design. With word and breath and action, God was intentional in our creation. In provision, He placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, which means Pleasure or Delight.

But if we jump ahead to Adam and Eve, we’ll miss the extravagant beauty of our origin story. We’ll marvel at that together tomorrow.