An identity grounded in God would mean that when we think of who we are, the first thing that would come to mind is our status as someone who is deeply loved by God. ~ David Benner
The journey to knowing God and knowing self follows the same, often arduous path. We don’t find one without the other.
But the lie we stumble over on the way is a potent one: Life is a self-design. You are the meaning of your own being.
I am my life. I decide who I am. I work alone.
We craft our image, composing a self, preening in the mirror of our choosing. The dressing room is littered with effort, outfits tried and found wanting. Accessories scatter as we pick through the bin to find something
- original, yet acceptable,
- charming, yet purposeful,
- cute, yet calculating.
We have goals to achieve, worlds to conquer, and crowds to impress…and so little time.
We are gladiators in the cruel arena of validation. Every moment we must justify the air we breath, our place on the planet, our position in the pecking order.
And we count and hoard the treasure of every “like” we can get, every evite to the party, every plaque on the wall. We fortify our defenses against the constant threat of nobody-ness.
I am my life. I thought I knew who I was. Why do I feel so alone?
Ah, but you are not your life. Your life is bound up in another. Crafted, yes, but not by your design. Life is not something to be made, but found in relationship with the Maker.
I fought in the validation arena. I learned to pose and posture so only the parts I was proud of showed. Everyone became a threat to the dazzling image I had in mind. Every failure was a fatal blow. The applause was never loud enough, my accomplishments were always eclipsed by more-talented others. The world orbited around me as I labored to create my own worth out of any material at hand.
Until, one evening I died. Standing in the moonlight on a bike path near my home, I surrendered all and felt no loss, just oddly free.
God is my life. He knows who I am, and he made a way for me to be found.
Galatians 2:20
Are you trying to make, or learning to find your life?
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10 replies on “Finding Your Life, Unexpected”
Beautiful Janet – that is it, simply beautiful. Thank you.
God bless you today, Laurie.
Surrender and submitting daily to The Lord.
Resting contently in the ebb and flow of His provision.
Asking, seeking, and knocking for guidance of what to do and what to wisely avoid.
Listen only to Him.
If I shine .. may I shine in Christ.
When I fail .. may The Lord’s power be made perfect in my weakness and failure.
Deeply loved by God because I am His .. His child .. His servant .. His disciple.
A thrilling place to stand, Ginny!
Your words are My words – yet I still need to stand on that bike path one glorious day! I Pray – Soon – very soon~~
I am praying, Wenche. You won’t regret your surrender.
St. Bernard de Clairvaux wisely suggested that the highest form of love (of the 4 he outlines) is love of self for God’s sake. His reasoning is that, to be completely comfortable in our own shoes is to be completely comfortable with the God who made us that way. We love God MORE not LESS because of who we are and who we’re becoming. Moreover, we do not project a false God from a false self. You know, the God we worship in ‘murica? The deeper my story aligns with God’s, the more I like the contours of that story, mine and God’s.
Great as usual, JH!
Your last line: Amen!
I underlined Galatians 2:20-21 in my bible barely 10 minutes before I read this latest post. Lord — you have my attention!
Hee, hee!