Identities and labels

Kelly: Who am I? Who are you? First things first, but not necessarily in that order. I identify as a Christian, first off. I'm a nurse, a friend, sister, daughter, among others. I don't have a "someone" in my life, so I don't have any sort of identification as a "girlfriend" or "fiance" or "spouse..." yet.

And I'm ok with that.

It took me a long LONG time to actually accept that right now, it's not for me. A relationship is something that God doesn't want me to pursue right now. I've taken it that He's just not ready to share me yet. And like I said, I'm ok with that. Just because I'm not somebody's girlfriend/fiance/spouse yet doesn't mean the world is going to end tomorrow. I really am ok. My identity as a Christian/single person/nurse/whatever is not something that needs to be fixed, or is something I have any intention of fixing anytime soon. Yes, we have various identities and labels that have been given to us, most of them given to us by choice. But you know? That doesn't mean that we have to carry them around every single moment of every day. And at the end of the day, in the eyes of the Creator, there's only one identity that matters; His child. Because that's the way He sees you! And me. And it's not a one size fits all approach. I've had people tell me "oh, you're a nurse" with THAT kind of tone? Know what I mean? It's almost condescending in a way. Or when I say I'm not married, it sometimes precedes that "oh...." Again, know what I mean? Ok, so the point to all of this is this; we're all not robots. God didn't make us all the same; He did that for a reason! Our identities are sometimes given to us, but it's up to us and to Him to discover more that we may come across.

Holly: I could be completely wrong, and I apologize if I am. But this is just what I've observed, mostly on Facebook, which...ya know.  I'll get to that a little later.

I think there are a lot of people, primarily our age, who simply have no idea how to function as an individual. Seriously. They always have to have someone, a significant other, jumping from one relationship into the next just so they don't have to be alone. Or the stuff I read on Facebook...it's "my boyfriend/husband this" "my girlfriend/wife that".  What about YOU? What about YOU- as a woman, as someone who makes people laugh, a brother, friend, YOU? You. As a person? YOU, the things that make you you?

As a Christian, our identities should first and foremost be found in Christ. But I think, especially with a lot of married people, it's easy to make their spouse an idol. Or their children. Or, if you're not married, maybe an addiction. Or your boyfriend/girlfriend. You get the idea. I believe that when Christ is at the center, He brings out all of our other "hats" naturally, because everything we do ought to be in glory to Him.

As someone who has, rather recently, become unsingle, I'm trying to remain intentional on preserving my individuality. My boyfriend does not complete me, and I don't want to be with him just because he makes me happy or fills me with the warm fuzzies. We made a conscious decision, basically on Day 1, to do our best to keep God at the center of our relationship, and to continue doing the things that make us us. And you know what? It's not hard. Really. Although he does give really good hugs...:) Ok, I sort of feel like I'm rambling and going all over the place, but the point I'm trying to make is that God made you to be uniquely you! Meaning: You don't need anyone or anything except Him! :)

P.S. I made a comment earlier about Facebook...Yes, I am unsingle. No, it's not "Facebook official", and yes, I'm keeping it mostly off social media, because, quite frankly, it drives me crazy to read status after status of how great someone's person is. It's not because I'm too good for social media, it's because I'm focusing on him, telling him what he means to me and not Facebook. The end. kthanxbai.