As we go throughout our lives, we ask ourselves, who am I, searching for the meaning and value of our lives through the outside manifestations of our environment.
Who do I view myself as?
Am I a mom, a wife, a friend?
Who do others see me as?
As a nurse, a provider, a kickboxer, a farmer?
And the answers that come to us either satisfy or create an internal chaos.
In our world, "Who Am I?" is an important question. It's a measurement of progress. It confirms or denys our effort and value that we are creating in this world. It reflects a knowing of where we stand, what we are giving, and what kind of effort we are putting forward.
But this question and comparison can also steal our sense of worth, and idling in those thoughts that come after can steal our souls.
If you're awake enough, you'll understand when I say that, the way we've been programmed to interact and serve in our world is not the same as what God had in mind for us.
In fact, as women we were made to produce, love, care, and serve our families. We were made to be caretakers. We were made to be helpers. And that didn't mean you couldn't have a business or have a career, but it was never the main goal.
As a man, you were made to provide, progress and protect. You were made to provide for the family, to progress in your career and in the world to help create a better one for the community, and to protect your family and "tribe". And that didn't mean you couldn't help care for the children, but that wasn't your main duty.
We were programmed away from Gods original plan in purpose. Consider what happens when you destroy and separate families. Consider what happens when you put both man and woman into a workplace and away from the home.
Who now has control of society? Who now makes more money off of your labor? Who now teaches your children and raises and leads the next generation?
AND SO MUCH MORE...
The world today has blended and morphed God's plan and characteristics to the point where society is greatly confused on what is truth and has lost all sense of real meaning and value in their lives, creating an ascending internal and external sickness focused in on temporary happiness, rank, wealth and materialism. So much so, that most of society has now developed internal characteristics and external integrities that do not align with God (Christ) at all.
And if you were not awake enough, you kind of are now (there is so much more to this)...
In searching for our meaning and our spirituality, it should begin with God. Initially, he put us here. He is our creator. Our father.
When you understand how the fetus begins and grows inside the womb, when you truly experience the life and spirit of a child, you can then understand the magnificence and miracle of your life and the gifts God has given us.
God created this world. He doesn't hate it, but the characteristics of man have always been soured away from Him through the efforts of other men who program and control us and sometimes through our own efforts with our ego and selfishness.
In order to find true internal value that brings you peace, you must first re-connect with God. And no, I am not speaking of the god society is churning us to believe in. Not the prosperity god. Not the materialistic god. Not the crystal and chakra god. All these gods are counterfeit to the one true God. A true and realistic counterfeit, so much so that it is so easy to get yourself wrapped up into it. And be very aware, MOST churches have become the wolves in sheeps clothing, funded by the powers itself, in order to further "society's " control.
Who you are and what value you bring out will be found in Him, and only in Him. Without God, you will not produce good and righteous fruits and characteristics (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, fidelity, gentleness, and self-control), and you will disconnect and avoid THE truth (I'm not speaking of your truth or experience). And when connecting with a spirituality outside of God, you may find some feelings of happiness, freedom and fulfillment, but they will be temporary and wavering because the god you are serving is of sand, not of rock. It is not the creator God, but of your own creation, of societies creation and of self.
Value, value comes from within. It is morphed through you with the help of God. But the value you crave is not societies version of value, but of Gods. Turn back to Him.
"For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them." Psalm 139:13-16
"Orthodoxy believes that each person has an intrinsic value and importance in virtue of his or her unique relationship to God...
While Orthodoxy recognizes the value of the person, it does not believe that we are meant to be isolated or self-sufficient...
The process of theosis takes place with the context of a believing community...
To be united with God within the midst of the Church does not mean that our unique personalities are destroyed. We are not engulfed by an impersonal force or power. As with all love which is true and valuable, God's love for each of us respects our personhood. His love is not one which destroys. God's love is one which reveals, elevates, and perfects our true selves. By entering into the life of God, we become the persons we are meant to be." www.stbarbaranj.org/our-faith/spirituality