Wednesday, March 02, 2011

What You Do is NOT Who You Are

One of Brock's mentors told him one day that what he does is not who he is. This guy was a pastor. When he stopped being a pastor, he did not know what to do or who to be. His identity was so wrapped up in being a pastor that he did not even feel like himself anymore.

Brock was told to think of one word to describe him. It was funny because the first thing that popped into my head for Brock was...Christian illusionist and for me was Brock's assistant. Then, I realized that our identity was too wrapped up in what we do for a living.

After thinking about it for a few days, Brock and I both came up with a word. For Brock we thought of things like "unforgettable" and "out of the box." However, these concepts contribute to the one word that really describes him...unusual. That's the reason he thinks differently from others and why a waitress that waited on him once 2 years ago will remember him today.

The word to describe me is adventurous. I wake up everyday thinking about new things I can discover. I never read the same book twice or rarely watch a movie more than once. If I can have it my way, I would eat a new food every meal (even if I hate it, I still enjoy trying something new). I will try almost anything once. When I drive home from the store, sometimes I take another (longer) route just for the fun of it. If I am not going on an adventure of my own, I will read one of my fiction books. They take me on new adventures daily.

Think about a word to describe you. You are not a teacher, banker, or mother of little Johnny. That's what you do which you may do very well. But who are you?

2 comments:

Haley said...

Oh that is thought-provoking!

Gin said...

I seriously doubt you have ever seen any movie once...a WHOLE movie, anyway. Do you still fall asleep half-way through every movie? Haha! Couldn't resist that comment. Love the post!