“You don’t even know who you are!”
The pastor spoke as though he saw something special in me. Already retired, I was comfortable in my skin and content with my life. Mostly. A part of me yearned for a life with more significance. This prophetic word he spoke gave a picture of me on a pathway, but brambles blocked it. He said once those were cleared away, I would move forward with ease. This was a vivid picture I understood, even though I didn't know what the brambles might represent. It ended with those words, and I puzzled over the meaning.
Another prophetic guy said he saw me standing just behind a line, like on a running track. The label on the line read “Hesitant”. Because of what happened in my past, I held back. He told me I could step across the line—Jesus was with me. That word propelled me forward into a new dimension of walking with God. Hearing words from the heart of Father God brought breakthrough. Other prophetic words given to me showed God had big dreams for me. I had none—until He opened them up in me.
After joining a writing group, I wrote to the daily prompts and built a collection of writings. This hinted at His plans. Step by step, He has led me to a place where I embrace this writing life. He also brought my husband to a place of supporting my writing and involvement with various writing groups.
First, my relationship as His daughter had to be solidified, because who I am as a writer flows from my identity in Jesus. Who does He say I am? Who did He design me to be? Over the years, I’ve worn many titles: sister, daughter, wife, mom, bank teller, office manager, seamstress, musician, teacher. And now writer. Yet, the most significant one is ‘Beloved’.
Someday, He will give me a new name. One just for me (that I don’t share with a dozen other Lindas) and that reflects my identity at the core. I love that. He knows me even better than I know myself. He knew way before I did that writing would bring fulfillment and fit the traveling lifestyle we live.
The more time I spend with Him, the more I become who He designed me to be. Writing is easy—but also hard. It takes focused attention, intentionality—and multiple edits. Without a close connection to Jesus, the Source of all creativity, it falls flat. I need those downloads from the heavenly realm to bring revelation and nourishment to those who read, fulfilling His purpose in my writing.
Not everyone is a writer, but everyone can be a beloved son or daughter of the Most High. That’s who I am—the Beloved!
