Discovering My True Identity

BeYOUtiful

BeYOUtiful

The radio host asked his co-host if she’d been engaged before. She had! And this is the story she told of  why she has a former fiancé instead of a current husband.

Once my fiance and I were walking through the supermarket. He picked up a magazine, flipped it open, and held it out to me. “See this? This is beautiful,” he said, pointing to a picture of a model. “And you’re almost there.”

{cricket, cricket}

You’re probably gasping in horror at this true story. How could he say something like that to her? What a ridiculous standard to hold someone to?

Continue reading →
Posted by Janna Wright in Discovering My True Identity
why we are so afraid of change

why we are so afraid of change

I met this girl once. She was severely depressed and had been for about 7 years. She’d lived in this story for so long that she couldn’t drum up energy or “want to” to do anything anymore – laundry, dishes, straightening the house, cleaning out clutter, even getting out of bed some days.

A variety of meds hadn’t helped. Changing her routine hadn’t helped. Counselors hadn’t helped. Getting a job hadn’t helped. She was flat-out STUCK!

When God crossed her path with mine, He whispered to me that grace COULD help! She and I chatted several times about how grace changes everything, and while she loved the hope I talked about, she was very skeptical. I understood why! She had tried so. many. things. And none had helped.

God prompted me to offer to help her dig out of the blech, and I was excited about giving her further hope and showing her how grace could change everything in her life. But, she said no.

I’ve often pondered why she refused. Maybe it was because she wasn’t truly desperate enough. Maybe it was because she was afraid of trying one more thing that might not work. Maybe it was because some other story kept her from accepting help. Or maybe, deep down, she was afraid of change.

Change Seems Scary

For most of us, change is scary. New homes, new jobs, new churches, new relationships – they’re all tinged with a certain amount of fear and uncertainty. We get used to our lives, and we’re comfortable here. That may sound crazy if you have a life  you don’t love or things that annoy and frustrate you. But the truth is, we crave familiar and cling to what we know and what we’re used to.

cheery girl with journal

So while most change seems scary, if we’re honest, the change that scares us most is change WITHIN us.

Why IS that?

I’ve come to believe inside change scares us the most because we fear that if we had to change, then something must’ve been wrong with us before. We were somehow messed up or broken or needed fixing, so we HAD to change. And that just doesn’t feel good. Who wants to believe they’re screwed up, much less have to carry around the guilt or the labels?

 Changing the Change Story

But what if all that guilt and being broken and “change is scary” is just another false story?

What if the truth is that we are NOT broken, wrong, or needing to be fixed?
(God tells us, as believers, that we’re not.)

What if change is simply a way to move toward MORE of something good?

What if the changes we make aren’t telling us something about our identity
so much as they’re helping us get what we want?

And what if we could reframe the old story into something
that serves us instead of scares us?

I think with a little story revision in our heads, we can turn change into a lovely thing in our lives. Something we WANT to have around. Something we begin to enjoy. Something we see as growth and healing and happiness. Something that lets us pursue more of what we want. Something that brings us MORE life!

That’s a story we’d be happier to live most any day, I bet.

change is good - gracethread Pin


Posted by Janna Wright in Discovering My True Identity, grace changes everything
what if god is okay with you today

what if god is okay with you today

What if God’s okay with who you are today?

No, really. I mean what if He’s absolutely, 100% okay with you right this second, believer?

What if He’s not sitting up there tsk, tsk-ing and shaking His head, muttering “Sure wish she’d get this lesson so we could move on”?

What if instead He’s gazing down on you in love, saying to His nearest archangel, “Hey, did you see that kiddo of mine down there? Boy, do I love her! She’s fabulous. And look at her with my Son in her – she can do ANYTHING. I can’t help smiling this wide when I think about her.” Continue reading →

Posted by Janna Wright in Discovering My True Identity, grace changes everything
why i like to call Him “Poppa”

why i like to call Him “Poppa”

I used to hear preachers claim,

The most important thing about you is what you believe about God.

My mental response was always, “Of course it is! I believe in God.”

But the view from here was of a supreme, all-knowing Being who looked down with a stern, wizened gaze. Never smiling much or laughing – at least not in my direction. Some days I knew He must sigh at my failure. Other times I was convinced He was shaking His head in disappointment.

So, every now and then I’d picture a loving father who cherishes and smiles on me in delight, but it was quickly overshadowed by my fear of disappointing Him.

Maybe my warped view of God stemmed Continue reading →

Posted by Janna Wright in Discovering My True Identity, grace changes everything
when life reminds you of elementary school

when life reminds you of elementary school

When I glimpse chosen in Ephesians, my mind drifts to elementary school and recess games.

The entire class lined up in two teams with hands interlaced. The other team would chant, “Red Rover, Red Rover, send [someone’s name] right over!” and that person from our team had to run as fast and hard as he could to break the other human chain. (Do you remember playing that one?)

The best part of the game?  Being chosen. Hearing your name chanted – “Red Rover, Red Rover, send Janna right over!” I still remember the knot in my stomach, waiting, then the shiver of excitement as I heard my name. 

Funny, but in a very small way, this reminds me of being chosen by God. Continue reading →

Posted by Janna Wright in Discovering My True Identity
when a children’s classic could influence our identity

when a children’s classic could influence our identity

Here’s something I’d like to ask God today:

Poppa,

If we gaze on Your grace, will we have a better picture of how You see us?  Will we glimpse what You’ve spelled out for us a little like Charlotte (though You’re never this small) with her stupendous Wilbur? Continue reading →

Posted by Janna Wright in Discovering My True Identity