Who are you?

So who are you? What is your identity? I define myself as being first a child of God. Second I am a wife to Scott. Third, a mom to Micaiah and Caeden. Fourth, a full-time homemaker. Third, a daughter, sister, friend, among other things.

Is it important that we prioritize our roles in life? What does it matter if we put more emphasis on one over another and if the role with the most emphasis changes?

Thankfully, God has laid out for us in His word what the order should be. In Deuteronomy 6:5 He tells us, "You shall love the LORD your God with all of your heart..." We know our relationship with the Lord should be the first and foremost relationship of our lives.

In Titus 2, Paul instructs Pastor Titus on what to teach the older women in his church to teach the younger women: "...and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled (emphasis mine). You can see the progression of relationships here. First husband, then children, then home.

Recently, God has revealed to me the misplacing of my roles. They have been all jumbled up. I don't even know what order they have been! All I know is that where I SHOULD find my true identity is not where I've been finding it. I have been defining myself by my other, less important roles. (And don't get me wrong, being a wife, mom, and homemaker are hugely important roles. They are what I spend my life doing right now. They just should not be the main source of my purpose in life.)

Since living with Scott's parents, my roles as homemaker and mother have shifted immensely. I am still mommy to Micaiah, and nothing can or ever will change that. But the way in which my role plays out is so different. Now there are 4 people sitting around all day to do what was once my job. (Both of his parents are retired, and since Scott's not working right now...that makes 4 of us!) I didn't anticipate how hard that would be for me and much I would miss "the old days" of it being just us. I chose to be a stay at home mom for a reason, and it's just not the same as it used to be.

The same goes for my role as a homemaker. I am responsible for helping out here and keeping our part running smoothly. But it is so very, very different from having your own home to keep. I'm just not needed in quite the same way. So like I said, how my roles play out has shifted.

When our roles shift with the changing seasons of life, we will be shifted right along with them....IF we define ourselves as most importantly being first a homemaker or mother or other role. Kids grow and leave the nest. Jobs change. It is only when we define ourselves most importantly by the Lord, our rock, that we will not be moved.

Had my priorities and roles been in the correct place, I would have not been shaken in this way. There is one thing that is needed. One who is THE ROCK. Rocks don't move. They don't shift and change.

James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Isaiah 26:4 Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD himself, is the Rock eternal.

How thankful I am that our Lord does not change. How thankful I am that I can stand secure and NOT be rocked as the seasons of my life change and my roles shift for a time. If only I can be sure to keep my identity in the correct place. May I encourage you to evaluate your roles? Would you be rocked if your most important role was changed or taken away? If so maybe you, like me, need to redefine yourself with the Rock that will not be shaken.