Sometimes you just need to be reminded of where you have been. Even more importantly the people you have influenced and who have influenced you. This path weekend was full of friends, mentors and colleges who have known me for a long time. Some of them have known me sine I was 10 years old!
This is good for someone who has spent the last 7 years circumnavigating the globe. Sometimes in the midst of being a foreigner in a foreign land you can forget who you are and where you came from. There is a weird isolation that comes with traveling. It is unavoidable, if you fully step into being present in a place, especially if you are by yourself. Things have changed over the years; more social media, crazy phones that can go anywhere – some people travel without really ever leaving anything behind. I feel that I have left a lot behind over the years. In my quest to be fully present in the moment I often forgot where I have been or even where I was trying to go, thus reconnecting with some key relationships is refreshing to this wondering soul.
I was reminded through the prayer of a wise recent college graduate (a kid I used to mentor) that the only thing that really matters is that I am a SON. First and foremost. My identity is as a SON of the Living God. Above being a “missionary,” an “artist,” an “uncle”; no matter what I do, or where I go – I AM A SON. Thank you Caleb for reminding me of this central truth, one I have attempted to preach over the years.
My identity is in the LORD, no matter what I do, or where I go.
I am reminded of a Maori Proverb: “You step into the future looking backwards.” (or something close to that)
(the above photo is me in New Zealand a couple years ago – I posted this photo to remind myself of all the cool people who I have been able to influence and be influenced by)
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