A Path Along My Journey

On Thursday, Stephen and I went to the zoo with a new Summit friend, Ruth, and her daughter Erin-my pictures would not download!=(. Jeremy and I are members of the zoo and are attempting to get some more visits in before our membership expires the end of April. The weather was great; I enjoyed my fellowship with Ruth; And Stephen had a great time seeing the animals with sweet Erin! On the way home, Ruth and I were talking, and the Holy Spirit spoke very clearly to my heart. Ruth asked me, "What are your hobbies?", and I truly did not know what to say. I mentioned golf (although I haven't played a round since before Stephen was born) and also reading, but from there, I was at a loss. I then explained to Ruth the journey I was on and how I was trying, as crazy as it sounds, to "find myself."=) Ruth then made a comment to the extend of "It's all about what you find your identity in." The Holy Spirit immediately pricked my heart with that thought, and I'm sure I seemed a little absent minded the rest of the ride home.
"What is my identity based on?" is the question that even now I cannot get out of my mind. At Union Grove, I feel like my identity was based a lot on our ministry to the students. I was "the student pastor's wife" and clearly knew and loved my roles. My identity was largely formed by that ministry. After the wreck, I think my identity shifted a little to "Tiffany Pollard...miracle family." That was great, but it was definitely not something I could hang onto. With the arrival of the boys, came once again another identity..."Stephen and Caleb's Mommy." And, of course, there's always the identity of "Jeremy's wife." Now, I'm just not sure what my identity is based on. I'm not involved enough at the Summit yet to claim that ministry as part of my identity. Who am I and on what do I base my identity? Here's where the Holy Spirit came in!...All of the things I mentioned above are great things. In fact, I love carrying some of those names. The bigger issue here, though, is the fact that my identity cannot solely lie in those things. In a moment, they could each be taken away and then who would I be? My identity should and absolutely MUST rest in Christ! I must base who I am on what God has done for me and how perfectly He loves me. Any other human basis would be such a mistake (and eventually unreliable). I've realized for the first time in my life that I have always lived basing my identity on temporal things. I know Christ and love Him, but I have yet to truly realize that He alone is the foundation for my identity; for who I am. Once I finish up my Proverbs 31 journey, I'm gonna travel back down this side-path of "identity in Christ!" I'm very excited to learn more and am attempting to even now find my value and worth in our Savior!