What Are You Known For?

Dr. Spencer R. Fusselman

“Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

What are you known for? When people speak your name, is it associated with peace or with hostility? Are you known for being anxious and harsh, or for being kind?

What you are known for in this life is the physical manifestation of your spiritual fruit. Jesus warned us that a tree is known by its fruit (Matthew 7:16). While He applied this test to false prophets, the mirror faces us as well. If you claim to be a TRUE disciple of Christ, will you not naturally exhibit the fruit of the Spirit?

If you are known for "bad fruit"—for a temper that flares or a tongue that cuts—is God’s Word identifying you as a false witness? The standard is clear: Jesus said, "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you" (John 15:14 NKJV). As His friends, we should be known for godliness, humility, and gentleness—a willingness to yield our own way for the sake of the Gospel.

"But, That's Just How I Am"

It is easy to be gentle when life is going perfectly. But when we get shaken up, what is our first response? Do we emotionally reach for our guns? Do we speak harshly? Too often, we defend these behaviors with the excuse: “That’s just how I am! You need to deal with it!”

This attitude is not a personality quirk; it is a spiritual danger zone. It communicates that you are unwilling to grow and, worse, unwilling to submit yourself to the Lord. You prefer your way above God’s way. In a nutshell, this is arrogance. It is pride. It is indicative of a heart turned inward and away from God.

This inward-turned heart does more than damage our relationships; it destroys our peace. A heart focused on self is the breeding ground for clinical anxiety. It focuses our attention on our own sufficiency, our own worries, and our own lack of control, rather than on the Word of God.

The world acknowledges the symptoms of an inward-turned heart, but often misses the cure. They will diagnose this condition using the DSM-5; they will label it General Anxiety Disorder or Panic Disorder. They will treat the symptoms with therapy and medication—and they are happy to take your money to do so—yet they rarely address the cause.

While physical health is real and important, the spiritual root of the problem is a heart that has lost its focus. When we become self-focused, we can no longer see the greatness and majesty of God. It is as if we have become blind to the fact that God is bigger than our problems, our bills, our fears, and life itself.

Think back to Peter stepping out of the boat. As long as his eyes were fixed on Jesus, he stood solidly on the chaotic waves. But the moment he took his eyes off Christ, he turned inward to his own fears and his own insufficiency. He sank because he looked at the storm rather than the Master of it.

The insufficiencies we experience are often exposed as insecurities in our behavior. Fear drives our insecurity, and pride holds onto it like a false badge of honor—as if our brokenness is a trophy of the trauma we have survived.

But we are called to something higher. When we truly overcome trauma in Christ, we no longer need the insecurity that comes from feeling unlovable or broken.

You are enough. You are enough because Jesus endured the shame of the cross to buy you from these chains. You are enough, with all your flaws, because God sent His own Son to die for you. You are enough to be called a Child of God!

And in the moments when you are not enough in your own strength, His strength is made perfect. But He can only show His power to the world when we hand Him our weakness, our insecurity, and our fear.

What then is the path to peace in the storm?

How do we change what we are known for? How do we move from a reputation of anxiety to a reputation of gentleness? Paul gives us the roadmap in Philippians 4. We must change how we pray, how we think, and how we live.

1. Turn Worry into Worship (Philippians 4:6-7) “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” When anxiety tries to strangle your peace, the first step is adoration. See God as big enough to solve your problem. Don't just list your complaints; bring your supplication (an earnest intensity) and your thanksgiving. Thanking God before the answer comes is the ultimate act of faith. The result is that the peace of God will guard your heart and mind like a soldier.

2. Guard Your Mind (Philippians 4:8) “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true... noble... just... pure... lovely... meditate on these things.” Anxiety feeds on lies and "what-ifs." To be known for gentleness, you must take every thought captive. Do not waste your brainpower on thoughts that tear you down. If a thought isn't true, noble, or lovely, it has no place in the mind of a disciple.

3. Practice the Presence of Peace (Philippians 4:9) “The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do...” We must be doers of the word, not just hearers. We must practice these truths until they become our nature. As we do, the "God of peace" will be with us.

What are you known for? Are we known for our diagnosis, our trauma, and our hostility in times of stress? Or are we known for trusting God in the waves of our human weakness?

Let us be a people who point others to Him. Let your gentleness be known to all men, not because you are perfect, but because you are held by the One who is.

“Cast your burden on the LORD, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.”  Psalm 55:22 NKJV