I got home from work and was doing Very Important Things like scrolling through pinterest. And I came upon a graphic that said, "Remember what you are."

This was a curious statement to me. Why not who? Why what? We are people. But what about the whats of who we are?

As writers, we have a unique situation. Writing is such a consuming thing. It is both a passion, but also hopefully a career. It is so much more than a hobby. I always wince when people call it that. Do they understand just how much this means to me?

Writing isn't just something we do. It becomes part of who we are.

But, if you're anything like me, we walk a dangerous line. Writing is a part of who we are, yes. It's very, very important to us.

But it's not who we are.

And I'm speaking as a Christian right now. As a beloved child of God, I am a member of His family. I have been seated in Heavenly places. I have been called according to His purpose. I have been made holy and pure. I am beloved and blessed.

So why is it a dangerous line to walk? Why would identifying yourself as a writer be a bad thing?

Because if we hinge our identity on something temporal, it can be taken away.

In other words, my writing is a physical act. When I die, my books will turn to dust right along with me. And on a lesser scale than that, my books can fail. I could never get published. I could get published, but no one likes my work and it does horribly.

What would happen to my sense of self? My self esteem would crumble. Because I, being a writer, would be a failure.

And even less than that. Now, before I'm even published. I could get a negative comment from a beta and it might crush me. If that's what I'm basing my self-worth on, of course negative words on my work would crush me.

But my God? My God is eternal. And He does not fail. My status as His child can only be taken away if I choose to cast it aside--and I have no plans on that.

You want to know a little secret?

Ever since I've given myself to Jesus--ever since I stopped letting my work define who I am--I've found that it's a lot easier to both explain my book to people and share my work with them. I used to freeze up and freak out when someone asked me what my book was about, but now I smile and have a mostly coherent response to give.

Because I'm not afraid of being crushed by their words. It's okay if they think I'm stupid. My worth isn't defined by my "stupid" idea, or their opinion of me.

So who am I?

I write books. I play piano. I bake things. I make coffee. I read a lot. These things matter, and they're a part of me. But they do not define me. 

I am a Christian. That's who I am. And no one can take that from me.

Who are you? Where do you tend to focus your sense of self?