Who Do You Say I Am?

"Jesus asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" ~ Mark 8:29

Do we really know each other deeply? I have just completed an activity of gathering what my innate abilities are from 15 people. What surprised me was how well people know me. I realized that who I am is pretty transparent. There were no surprises in the gifts that were named and all rang true for me.

Jesus' closest earthly friends thought they knew him. Peter even responded resoundingly: You are the Christ! What Peter named, he could not identify though. He did not really comprehend what that naming meant. The gift that being the Christ entailed was beyond his understanding.

So often who we are gets misunderstood. Today Jesus clearly reminds us who he is and what his true purpose in life is. The reason he came was to redeem the world and that meant suffering and dying on a cross. He encourages the disciples to be ready to do the same. If we are to follow Christ, we must pick up our own crosses. No free rides here. Total commitment is required. We cannot always think as humans think. We need to try to see the world and ourselves through the eyes of God and then follow what we see.

I think accepting or embracing our life calling can be a challenge. Jesus is strong and rooted in who he is. When I look at my own gifts that were named, I see that many of them are deeply rooted and I live comfortably with them. Some are still emerging. Some need to be claimed more completely. I am discovering how my gifts relate to my life calling and that is interesting for me.

Do you know who you are and how others see you? Do those two images match?

Peace,

Suzanne