Identity

“Tara Lee, you are a baptized child of God; whatever else you are, remember that you are that for that is the basis of whatever else you are.”

Through the waters of Baptism, I have been called and claimed as a precious child of God. And as a precious child of God, God has given me gifts; given each of us gifts to share with the world.

It is not easy for us to let others affirm us. In fact at times it can be quite uncomfortable. Yet I believe we are still called to share our stories. A friend affirmed gifts in me by sharing that I am the “light in the midst of the darkness.” I bring a light into dark places. She can name the people and places that I have marked! Wow….what a powerful statement and affirmation!

Hearing that makes me realize even more how my families story of mental illness is linked together. I am many things but most importantly I am a child of God who is also a daughter of someone who lives and daily struggles with mental illness.

By knowing my identity, I know that God will always accompany me through those dark places and will never leave me in the pit. God is a great God who makes things new.

 

Who I Am

Today is a busy Sunday so I thought I’d keep it simple today.  I am a huge fan of Christian music. Jason Gray and Francesca Batestilli are two of my all time faves along with Jars of Clay. The first time I heard Jason Gray’s song “Remind Me Who I am”, I felt so many emotions. This song is about remembering who we are and who God has called us to be.  The video is such a beautiful reminder of this promise.

For me, I am called to be a Diaconal Minister, a granddaughter, a niece, a friend, a sister, and a daughter; a daughter of someone who daily lives and struggles with a mental illness. This song is a song I crank up the radio and belt out to because it is such a beautiful gift. In fact, in the midst of our brokenness, God says, “You are broken and loved….remember that I; that I will never leave you or forsake you.

And in the midst of this #write31 days challenge, I have found so many great blogs and posts. Today I would like to share just a few. My new friend TM is sharing about her own journey of depression. Her posts are so honest and vulnerable. I think many people will be blessed by her sharing. Check out her blog at Tales from a Southern Catholic Momma! And if you haven’t read this post (Hey Beautiful!) yet, YOU MUST!
 
Have a blessed Sunday my friends!
 
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5 Minute Friday on a Saturday

Sweet Lisa-Jo hosts a weekly linkup at the Gypsy Mama called 5 minute Friday. That’s exactly what you do – write for ‘five minutes flat {on the given topic} – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking.’ This week Lisa-Jo’s Facebook friends chose the topic of identity.

I saw this on my dear friend Anna’s blog and decided to spend 5 minutes writing on identity myself.

GO….

Identity is a crazy thing. My identity is as a daughter, sister, niece, grandchild, friend, mentor, Diaconal Minister, colleague, friend…etc! One identity that I yearn for extremely deeply is to be a MOM! However I must find that special man. But then I realize that society is different now and I could be a MOM without getting married. Its hard to think about because I dont know how people would react etc. What if I decided to do IVF or to adopt as a single woman? So often I think we get caught up in those identities we want to be or so deeply yearn for but what I think we fail to remember is that God has called and claimed us. Our identity is as “children of God.” I am a child of God, called and claimed, fearfully and wonderfully made in God’s image! However I think that is hard for us.

My identity as a Diaconal Minister is important to me but yet it is hard for others to identify and claim that identity because they dont know a lot about the roster or understand what to do with us. However it is my call…it is one of the identities GOd has given and called upon me!

Identity is hard. Sometimes it is hard to even know what my identity is when I see how Im treated or how others are treated. Identity my friends though is who I am; a child of God!

—STOP! 5 Minutes is up! Hopefully the post makes sense! Ive never done a blog post like this before but I kind of liked it!