One of the speakers in church this morning said something I liked. It was a quote she once saw written on a chalkboard: "The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing."
And the main thing is that we are children of God, loved, and inherently divine. And nothing and no one can challenge or diminish that fact. Any other role we play in life (and there are many) can come and go; we can fail, and we may feel inadequate at it. We may not be the best mother we want to be, the best employee, the most successful teacher or perfect friend. We may not always be a spouse, a musician, an artist. Life changes and things are sometimes lost. But we can't fail at being a child of God. It doesn't depend on our actions or our successes. We don't earn it. Our identity as a child of God can't be taken from us.
Because of this, if we base our sense of self-worth on our other roles (parent, friend, whatever), we set ourselves up for a roller-coaster ride. Some days we might be confident and good at it, and some days we might fall short or disappoint ourselves. But if we base our self-worth on being a child of God, we will have a firm foundation and a sure anchor in whatever storm life may throw at us. That knowledge helps us maintain inner calm and peace, no matter our circumstances, and no matter what else in our lives might crumble.
My great-grandmother used to call these sorts of thoughts and insights her blood transfusions, because they buoyed her up and gave her new life. That's how I feel after today's reminder.
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