Remember Who You Are
Last week was just one of those weeks. It started off well but went rapidly downhill. On Monday, Jason and I took the dogs on a very pleasant hike and then just spent some quality time together in the afternoon. Great day! I was looking forward to Tuesday because I had a couple of writing projects I was eager to get back to after the long holiday weekend. Unfortunately, I awoke Tuesday morning with a terrible headache. I was able to get a few things done, but overall, my plans for the day were ruined.
On Wednesday, I ran errands which took up the majority of the day and left very little time for much else. Thursday, I was determined to get some work accomplished, but try as I might, problems popped up one after another. By Friday, I was tired, frustrated and ready to do absolutely nothing! I had struggled all week long to put my motivation to work, but by Friday, that motivation was long gone. In short, I didn't care anymore. I just wanted to sit down and have myself a royal pity party. Unfortunately, I did just that. You see, the frustrations of doing my work weren't the only things fighting against me last week. I was fatigued by the headache early in the week. I was frustrated that my plans were not going as I wished. I was discouraged by my many fruitless efforts. And to be honest, I was envious of the success of others around me, including some of the writers I have coached who now seem much more successful than I am. All together, I had a recipe for a world-class, bring on the chocolate, "why me" kind of pity party.
And the worst part was that I couldn't get out of it. I felt trapped, imprisoned by emotions that I couldn't figure out how to process, and overwhelmed by the continuous stream of circumstances that were beyond my control. Have you ever been there? You want to be happy. You want to snap out of it. But for the life of you, you just can't figure out how. That's where I spent the weekend, but thankfully, I was not alone. There was Someone else there in the darkness of the pit. There was a Voice that offered both encouragement and instruction. There was a Hand that held me tight and reminded me that I was loved.
This morning, as I finished my devotions, a phrase from the Disney movie, The Lion King, came to my mind--"Remember who you are." I was nearly out of my pit of despair, but those words gave me the extra push to finish the climb to safety. "Remember who you are." Well, who am I? I'm not a best-selling author. I'm not a world-famous speaker. I'm not a concert pianist. I'm not the ultimate housekeeper. I'm not even the perfect wife, daughter, sister or aunt. So who am I?
I am a child of God. - John 1:12
I am an heir to the kingdom of Heaven. - James 2:5
I am a friend of Christ. - John 15:15
I am the temple of the Holy Ghost. - I Corinthians 6:19
I am a saint. - I Corinthians 1:2
I am part of the body of Christ. - Romans 12:5
I am a sheep. - Psalm 100:3
I am forgiven. - I John 1:9
I am free. - Romans 8:2
I am redeemed. - John 3:16
I am a new creature. - I Corinthians 5:17
I am God's workmanship. - Ephesians 2:10
I am alive. - Ephesians 2:4-5
I am loved. - Romans 8:37-39
I could go on, but I think you get the point. I know I did. So, I may not be as successful as I want to be. So, I may not be as talented as I wish. So, I may not be the best at everything I set my hand to. Does any of that really matter? I am what God made me to be. . .nothing more, nothing less. Maybe if I spent less time focusing on who I'm not, I would be able to accomplish more towards being who I am, or even better, whose I am. After all, by God's standards, success is defined by obedience. He doesn't need us to be famous, only faithful.
Remember who you are. Who knew we could glean such valuable insight from a cartoon character?