God gives us what we need for the time when we need it. Paul was a Roman citizen. When Paul was about to be scourged, his citizenship stopped it.
The Lord knows my future. He knows what I need today to prepare me for tomorrow. He knew Paul would need his Roman citizenship at a very specific time.
We all have an identity at birth. We have no say in it. But God does. And He is with us.
If I’m troubled by my beginnings, if I don’t think I have what I need, if I wonder at the the paths I’ve been on, if I wonder at what I’ve had no choice in, if I can’t fathom how or why I’ve ended up here, my peace is in the Lord.
Because He knows the end from the beginning. Just like God knew that Paul would need his citizenship, He knows what I need that I can’t even imagine, or figure out, or plan for.

He knows where I’ve been and why I’ve been there. He knows what He’s calling me to today and why He’s doing it. He knows where I’m going and the glorious eternity He’s preparing for me.
If today, He’s calling me and leading me in a certain direction, then I go. Will I have what I need? Yes. Even if it seems impossible? Yes. He’s God. He sees all. He knows all. And He’s faithful to those who call on His name.
But what if I go one direction and it takes me far from where I thought I was heading? God is faithful. Plain and simple. If He calls me one way and I was thinking another way makes more sense, I can trust Him and go the way He’s calling me.
The Lord knows my future. He knew Paul’s. He knows what I need today and He knows what I’ll need tomorrow. He knew all that before I was even born.
And He gave me what I needed then.
He’s given me what I need for today.
He’ll give me what I need in the future. God is faithful.