Who Am I?

Perhaps one of the biggest questions of all time asked by human beings is "Who am I?"  Insecurities fill our mind such as why am I here and do I really have a purpose? We can fill the question with all sorts of silly answers that sound good to us or we can stress over not having an answer to them at all OR we can choose to know that the question has already been answered for us... not by some self-help book or even by the beloved Oprah, but instead by the Creator of the Universe. God says plenty in His Word about who you are, specifically who you are because of His Son Jesus Christ. And since God created you,  I think He definitely has the authority to answer the question. Here is a handy, compiled list of who God says you are and what you have in Jesus, just in case you wake up some mornings questioning it all.

IN CHRIST I AM...

• complete
• free
• holy
• chosen
• without blame
• forgiven of ALL my sins
• delivered
• redeemed
• born again
• healed
• greatly loved
• strengthened
• more than a conqueror 
• an overcomer
• an ambassador
• not my own
• God's workmanship
• a joint-heir with Christ
• a temple of the Holy Spirit
• a doer of the Word of God
• the voice of His praise

I HAVE...

• the mind of Christ
• the peace of God
• God living in me
• received the power of the Holy Spirit
• put off the old me and put on the new me
• no lack
• a shield of faith
• a spirit of power and love
• a sound mind

All of these assuring answers about who God says you are are clearly stated in His Word.. pick a few to remind yourself of everyday. Maybe even put a note on your mirror with the ones that resonate with you or you need to remember the most. If you want to know where in the Bible to find any of these, ask me and I'll gladly get the actual verse for you. Someone once told me that what we say is least important, what we do is of great importance, but who we are is of the utmost importance. Remember who you are.

Mid-Pregnancy Crisis

According to some of my pregnancy books, I'm officially into my third trimester today. That means I've got about 6 months down, but still over 3 months to go! And lately, especially in the last couple of weeks, I've been getting comments about my growing belly from strangers that make me want to flat punch them out. LOL Some examples? 

Cashier at the grocery store says, "When are you due, looks like any day now." Um.. try August!

Hairdresser at salon says, "Aw.. are you getting your haircut for the delivery?" Nope. 

You know...I've actually been pretty proud of myself too for keeping my weight gain steady and under control (unlike last time!) and exercising almost daily. But I'll admit my belly is pretty popped out there. 

I have a friend who is due about 3 weeks from now and people keep asking if we are due around the same time!  UGH. Her belly is clearly smaller than mine. You have to look closely to even tell she's expecting and she could go into labor any day now! But my husband lovingly calms my comparing worries by telling me, "She's over 6 foot tall, I bet the baby is standing up in there." And when I came home with my "pre-delivery haircut" the other night in complete distress over all this, he took out the camera and actually had me pose just to prove to me I still look beautiful! (Did I mention I love him??) 

While I can try to shake off most comments, the physical toll of this protruding belly isn't letting me ignore some of the truth behind them. I decided for Mother's Day this year I wanted to hike to the top of Mount Nittany with my family. It's an easy trail that takes under 2 hours and has beautiful views of Happy Valley. But yesterday I couldn't even make it up the hill to our driveway. I was huffing and puffing and about to fall over. There goes my beautiful Mother's Day dream! Lol 

Maybe now that I'm in my last trimester I will be able to handle the comments and waddling and fainting symptoms a little easier.. and no matter what I just need to remember that there is a handsome, healthy baby in there right now and there is nothing to stress over about that!