Hope for Life Blog

On a recent trip to Florida, I heard someone commenting on the traffic problems in Orlando. This person cited a study which indicated that the congestion was caused by the number of people who aren’t sure where they’re going.

This is an apt description of the world in general. I would say that many problems arise because people don’t know where they are going. Everyone seems to be in a hurry to get somewhere, but few seem to know where they are headed.

In a story about Jesus, recorded by one of his apostles named John, we read this: “Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him.” (John 13:3-5)

In Jesus’ day, people traveled largely by foot on dusty roads and dirty city streets. They wore open-toed footwear. When they ate, they often reclined around low tables, with one person’s feet near another person’s head. Foot washing wasn’t a luxury; it was part of basic hygiene.

It was also a task that was performed by the lowest of the low, the slaves who did the dirtiest deeds. How could Jesus bring himself to perform such a filthy, humiliating task?

He knew where he was going. He knew who he was, where he had come from and where he was going. He wasn’t defined by that task nor any of the tasks that he performed while on this earth. He was going somewhere.

We can be like Jesus in that regard. We can know who we are. We can know where we are going. And that knowledge can free us to do whatever needs doing in this world.

Let me tell you more. Write to me at tarcher@heraldoftruth.org. Or check out the four numbered steps on the www.hopeforlife.org website. Life is so much better when we know where we are going.

We hear a lot about identity theft and the various ways you can make your identity more secure. For years, some women have been struggling with feelings of lost identity when they become mothers.
Our culture/society often sends mixed messages both to the working moms and to those who choose to stay home. Because of the way some may perceive the stay-at-home mom, she can feel devalued by not pursuing a career in the corporate world or unappreciated by the largely invisible work of nurturing that isn’t rewarded by a paycheck. On the other hand, those who choose to pursue a career, or must work because of finances, must deal with guilt feelings because they are not available for their children at all times. Satan takes every opportunity to steal our confidence, and in the process robs us of our identity.
The entire identity of a woman is not all about being a mother, but more about being daughters of our Father in Heaven. When we realize that motherhood and nurturing is a great calling of women, and understand who we are in relation to Christ we will have a new kind of identity and a greater self-esteem. Jacqueline Kennedy once made the statement, “If you bungle raising your children, I don’t think whatever else you do well matters very much.”
Those who have children know very well that we are often referred to as “so-n-so’s” mom, which lends to making us feel that we have lost our identity. However, those who are children of the King have a secure “identity.” The most important identity is not how the world views mothers, but how God views them. The Word of God says that because of Jesus Christ our identity is secure. We must rely on God for our true worth, value and identity.