I attended a Homeschool meeting recently and the first speaker quickly began by handing out an index card to each parent and asked that we write down who we were. I quickly scrawled my name...after borrowing a pen...and sat waiting for instruction. She started with this, "If you wrote down your name or even your profession you didn't answer my question. I asked, who are you." She went on to encourage us not to define ourselves by our name, not our profession, but our identity. Profound. It struck a cord with me.
Hi Brittney! I'm from Central Texas and I affectionately call my town a little big town. I'm married to my High School Sweetheart (13 yrs together today!), home school my two kiddos, craft, I'm Mexican, was Miss Hispanic ____ (my town's name)in high school and don't speak Spanish, I have 6 brothers, 1 sister, 7 brother-in-laws, 8 sister-in-laws, 9 nephews, and 4 nieces, I cut my tongue open when I was 5 by biting it...on accident, broke my arm running into a wall with my pants around my ankles and can touch my nose with my tongue. Thought I'd give you all my random.
She loved it, emailed me back, she's a gem & I think I made a fast friend...yada, yada, yada. Did I ever once mention my affection for the Father? Nope. Man that made me feel like a fraud. Because the reality is without Jesus, I'm really not anything. (Disclaimer: Although I failed to mention to Britney how hold I was when I ran into said wall without pants, I was 5. That's a story for another day, but I thought I should clear that up.)
Then sweet Jess at Allora Handmade tweeted her weekly question for a series she started called That's What She Said, and asked "What do you hope your first impression says about you?" I pondered and pondered, and might have answered too late, but responded: authentic, genuine, loved.
authentic:
1. not false or copied; genuine; real: an authentic antique.
2. having the origin supported by unquestionable evidence; authenticated; verified: an authentic document of the Middle Ages; an authentic work of the old master.
3. entitled to acceptance or belief because of agreement with known facts or experience; reliable; trustworthygenuine:
1. possessing the claimed or attributed character, quality, or origin; not counterfeit; authentic; real: genuine sympathy; a genuine antique.
2. properly so called
3. free from pretense, affectation, or hypocrisy; sincere: a genuine person.
loved:
1. held in deep affection; cherished: loved companions; much-loved friends.
That's a tall order. Am I called to be those things? Loved? Isn't that a bit presumptuous? The truth is this: I should be called these words.
As a Christian, a woman, a wife, a Mommy, a Homeschool parent, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a blogger, an etc. it's so easy for me to get swallowed in what the world wants me to look like. I could easily become discontent with the calling on my life or even discredit the worth of the calling on my life and that is simply not from the Father.
I am Jenni. I am a witty gal with 31 years of stories. I am a daughter and follower of the Father. I am {authentic} wonderfully made. I'm a loyal {genuine} friend who loves deeply and shares my love with encouragement of others. I am {loved} a wife, Mommy, daughter, sister, and friend.
So who are you? What do you want to be the first impression others see in you?
That's a tall order. Am I called to be those things? Loved? Isn't that a bit presumptuous? The truth is this: I should be called these words.
As a Christian, a woman, a wife, a Mommy, a Homeschool parent, a daughter, a sister, a friend, a blogger, an etc. it's so easy for me to get swallowed in what the world wants me to look like. I could easily become discontent with the calling on my life or even discredit the worth of the calling on my life and that is simply not from the Father.
I am Jenni. I am a witty gal with 31 years of stories. I am a daughter and follower of the Father. I am {authentic} wonderfully made. I'm a loyal {genuine} friend who loves deeply and shares my love with encouragement of others. I am {loved} a wife, Mommy, daughter, sister, and friend.
So who are you? What do you want to be the first impression others see in you?
