I Am First and Foremost a Child of God Who Happens to…

I know what you are thinking…a blog? Who reads those? I had those same thoughts but guess what? Here you are reading my blog! A small miracle. God is winning already.

Want to know about another miracle? The fact that this blog is even out on the world wide web for all to see. The whole time I was making this page, and even as I type this out, I was wondering what the heck I was doing. The same thought kept circling back to the forefront of my brain - who would want to read what I write? I am a nobody.

My following on Instagram is very much average. I played college basketball for a pretty good small school and an okay big school. I come from the state of South Dakota where we are known for two things: rocks with faces and a corn building. I certainly don’t have a degree in divinity or theology. Actually, sometimes when I read the Bible, I get 10 minutes in and realize that I have no idea what I just read.

So let me repeat myself, I am a nobody. By all measures, standards, and criteria I have very little value to my name. Except one very, very important fact.

Before I tell you what it is though I want you to know that we share this characteristic. Me and you, we have this in common. No matter who you are, where you come from, what you look like, or what you have done - we share this one thing.

I am a child of God and so are you.

You are fearfully and wonderfully made in God’s image. You are His daughter or son, and He loves you!

So, I might be a nobody, heck if you are reading this then chances are you fall under the “nobody” category too, but we are in luck because God loves to use people just like you and me.

Don’t believe me? I’ll give you an example.

Remember Moses? The murderer with a speech impediment who led the Israelites out of Egypt? Big fat nobody.

Remember David? Like the shepherd boy who killed a giant and eventually became king? Big fat nobody.

Remember Mary? The young peasant girl who birthed the savior of the world? Big fat nobody.

Remember Jesus's disciples? A disliked tax collector and some lousy fisherman? Big fat nobodies.

So actually, that was a couple of examples, but you get the point now. Somebody told me one time, “If not you then who?” None of those people seemed like likely candidates for God to use but they are exactly who He used. So that’s why I decided to write this blog, because if not me then who?

I’m not perfect. Far from it actually, but I am a child of God and I want you to know that you are too. I want you to know how loved you really are. I want you to know that your identity does not come from anything that this world has to offer. I want you to know that most importantly, more than anything else, you are first and foremost a child of God.

Still reading? Another miracle.

Now let me explain what I mean.

You are first and foremost a child of God who happens to be a basketball player, a coach, a student, or the boss of a big company. You can fill in the last part with whatever you think defines you. The key word being think because there is nothing that will give you more joy and freedom than realizing that everything you do on this Earth is secondary to the identity that our Father gives you.

For a long time, I didn’t have this figured out. I actually had it backwards. I tried finding my identity in all the wrong places and sport was the biggest culprit. My thoughts, choices, and actions were consumed by being the best athlete possible. Eventually I decided to play college basketball where being an athlete really did take over my life. If you have ever been a college athlete at any level, you get this struggle. You don’t get to make your own schedule but rather it seems like the coaches and the sport control your day, week, month, and year. You are constantly running from classes, to lifting, to conditioning, to film, to practice.

Now let me pause and say that I loved being a college athlete. I was lucky enough to play basketball and run track at the college level for five years and I would not trade that experience for the world. It taught me so many valuable lessons, brought amazing people into my life, and shaped me into the person I am today.

However, it was hard and for a long time I let my performances define me. I thought my identity came from how many points I could score or what awards I could win. It got to the point where I was so worried about all these things that basketball and track stopped being fun.

Maybe this was you or maybe this is you right now. Maybe it’s not sports for you but instead you play an instrument, you sing, or you really want in that one sorority. Or maybe you’re a student who thinks that your grades define you. (I have felt this struggle too.) I don’t know what it is for you, but you do.

No matter what you are personally going through right now though, I have some good news for you. Those things don’t define you. It does not matter how good of a basketball player, saxophone player, or mathematician you are. You could have straight A’s right now or dare I say it, a B. Those things don’t define you. I’ll say it louder for the people in the back, those things do not define you.

Still reading? God is good.

Let me tell you a story. It’s short I promise.

One time when I was riding on the bus with some of my teammates, I heard something that broke my heart. We were nearing the end of our season and one of the seniors said they were scared to be done playing. She said she did not know who she was if she wasn’t a basketball player. For as long as she could remember that had been her identity. For her whole life everyone around her had always known her as “the basketball player”. So, that is exactly what she thought of herself too. She thought she was “just a basketball player”.

The truth is I don’t blame her for thinking this because for a long time that is exactly what I thought of myself too. But how sad is that? This person was amazing in so many different ways. She was smart, kind, and a really good friend and yet she thought she was just a basketball player?

I saw this fear in so many of my teammates as they nodded along. They too believed that they were just basketball players. I think this is why so many college athletes have an identity crisis when they take off their jersey for the last time. For me, I was sad that basketball was no longer going to play as big of a role in my life as it once did, but I was also excited for the next chapter in my life because I knew that being an athlete was only a small part of who I was. I no longer believed that it was my identity.

After the very last basketball game that I played I was asked if I had anything to share with my teammates and coaches. At first, I was not going to say anything because of all the emotions that I was feeling but then I thought back to that conversation I had on the bus. At the time I wasn’t quite sure what to tell my teammate who was terrified to no longer be a basketball player. I did not know how to say it in a way that she would understand and if I’m being honest, I was scared to say something for fear of what everyone listening might think.

This time though I said what had been weighing on my heart. I told them that no matter what anybody says, they are so much more than just basketball players. It does not matter how much or how little success they ever have playing this game. A sport cannot, will not, and should not ever define who they are.

In the locker room and at that very moment I ended the message right there, but I think I left out the most important part. I did not tell them what actually defines them. I did not tell them that the God who created us and sent His one and only son to die for us is who really defines us. I forgot to tell them the good news! So now that is why I am telling you. I hope someday that those girls read this and hear the rest of the story. For now, I’m at least telling you and I want you to know and believe with all your heart that you are more than whatever you think defines you because it doesn’t.

Knowing that I am first and foremost a child of God has completely changed the way I live. When I put my identity in things of this world, like basketball, it always left me unfulfilled. It was a rollercoaster of highs and lows and even in the highest of highs I was always left thinking - is this it?

When you place your identity in Christ you are putting it on solid foundation. Sports, jobs, money, physical appearances, and even people are not permanent. God is though. He is unchanging, trustworthy, and loving. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Being a child of God isn’t something that changes at the end of a season, career, or relationship but it’s eternal. It’s a light that never goes dark. It’s a well that never runs dry. It’s an everlasting joy.

I understand this now and I hope that someday you will too. I don’t know where you are in your faith. Maybe you have never heard the name Jesus before. Maybe you went to church growing up, but life got busy and somewhere along the way you stopped going. Maybe you have already given your life to Christ. Maybe you just can’t see how a God like this could possibly exist.

I don’t know where you are. But God does. He sees you. He loves you. He wants you to know that you are first and foremost a child of God.

And I want you to know that too. That’s why I’m writing this blog. If I can let one person out there know where their identity comes from then I’ll consider this blog a success. Because if not me then who?

Like I said, I’m a nobody. I’m not an expert on the Bible. I don’t have this crazy, impressive background. My Instagram page could use some work. But I do have a heart for Jesus and for some reason or another you just spent the last eight minutes reading a blog written by a nobody.

That’s one more miracle.

So, keep reading. My goal is to write at least once a week and I want to personally invite you to walk along beside me. If you feel lonely, lost, or even just bored then come along on this journey. Let me tell you more about Jesus.