Written by monthly contributor, Kat.
These three songs have taught and inspired me and I hope they do the same for you.
1. What You Do Does Not Define You
(True Things by JJ Heller)
One of the best things about leaving the working world and staying home when I had my first child, was that learned how much I put my identity in what I did.
I went from a very cool job in the music industry to staying at home and watching Barney reruns over and over and over and over.
When people asked me, “what do you do?” I felt lost because I had mistakenly let the answer to that question DEFINE me when all it really should do is DESCRIBE me.
Our definition, value, worth is not found in the things we do. And it’s not found in the children we love.
It’s found in Who loves us.
2. What You Look Like Does Not Make You Beautiful
True beauty isn’t something that changes. The Mona Lisa isn’t less beautiful now than when it was freshly painted. Because it’s beauty isn’t in the taughtness of the canvas or the freshness of the paints. It’s beauty is in the excellence of creation and the skill of the creator.
I have always loved this quote:
Whatever is in any way beautiful hath it’s source of beauty in itself. Praise forms no part of it, so it is none the better or the worse for having been praised. -Marcus Aurelius
You are beautiful because of Who is in you. You are beautiful because you have been made with excellence by the ultimate creator of beauty.
(Beautiful by Bethany Dillon)
3. God Cannot Love You More
He is infinitely perfect and powerful, so is His love.
He cannot love you more than He already does.
You cannot earn more of His love, He has already given it fully. You can only believe it, receive it and live it.
Do you remember when you first got engaged? How for days afterward, regardless of what you were wearing, you walked like a princess because the ring on your hand showed that you were well loved.
There are marks on His hands that show you are unfathomably, unimaginably, indescribably loved.
(How He Loves by the David Crowder Band)
I pray today you would be so well marinated in His love that you would walk differently. Talk differently. Live differently.
Not out of effort but because you know these things are true about you and you simply can’t help it.
Question: What song has inspired you recently?
I know I’m a little late here, but wanted to write this anyway. Thinking of “God cannot love us more” . . . I heard in a class once, though I’ve never done the research to back it up, an interesting bit of scriptural insight.
When the Bible says God is a jealous God, the root of the word jealous (Hebrew? not sure) is in reference to the fabric-dying process, specifically the point in which fabric has been so completely saturated with dye, that it cannot accept any more color. Similarly, God’s love is so complete, that it is impossible for Him to love us more.
I like that idea with regards to the use of “jealous.” As I said, I haven’t researched it to verify it; someday I will. Either way, I also believe, as you said, that God cannot love us more than He does.
Thank you SO very much…the Lord new I needed to hear this. I just quit my job yesterday to be a stay at home mom to my beautiful 11 month old girl. I have always defined myself in what I did and I am just now realizing how unfulfilling wrong this is. It is about whose I am and how I convey that to others. Thank you again for a wonderful reminder that I need daily at this point in my life!
Thank you for posting this. I have a mommy blog too, and it is so easy to get caught up in the “doing” and our day to day routines and how we can make them better and to feel defined by how well we can get our tasks done, when in reality, that’s not what our life is about. Thanks for stopping us mommas dead in our tracks and reminding us that we are more than moms. We are children of God, and He loves us regardless of how clean our kitchen is.
Finding my true identity has always been my challenge. Thanks for sharing these inspirational videos.
I loved reading this post.. It’s always great to be reminded of God’s love for me! The song that has been one of my favorites is Indescribable by Chris Tomlin. The song sings of the wonders of God and what he has done, and at the end it says “You’ve seen the depths of my heart, and you love me the same, you are amazing God!!!”.
How timely this post is! Such a blessing to me.
Grace….by Phil Wickham
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgrNijfWamk
Lyrics to Grace :
The sky is grey and the light is far
The sea is a rage within my heart
I turn my sight to the crashing waves
I cry in the night just to be saved
I need eyes to be my guide
I need a voice that’s louder than mine
I need hope I need You
Cause I can’t do this alone
Grace I call Your name
Oh won’t Your smile fall over me
I’m cracked and dry on hands and knees
Oh sweet grace rain down on me I need You grace
I pray for dawn a new day to live
I pray for mercy only Jesus gives
Though darkness falls and a million cry
I believe over all there’s a greater light shining for us
Come down and save me
The sky is grey and the light is far
The sea is a rage within my heart
I turn my sight to the crashing waves
I cry in the night just to be saved
I need eyes to be my guide
I need a voice that’s louder than mine
I need hope I need You
Cause I can’t do this alone
Grace I call Your name
Oh won’t Your smile fall over me
I’m cracked and dry on hands and knees
Oh sweet grace rain down on me I need You grace
I pray for dawn a new day to live
I pray for mercy only Jesus gives
Though darkness falls and a million cry
I believe over all there’s a greater light shining for us
Come down and save me
Going from a career oriented woman – the office, the title, travel… to staying at home is still an adjustment for me. I love this post. Thank you.
I LOVED this post! Some of my favorite songs and what beautiful, true words. Just today, I was telling my husband that being a stay at home mom is great, but it sometimes really sucks the life out of you…..at least when I worked I had a chance to pee in private
Sometimes, I feel like I have lost my identity and this really helped me. Thank you so much!
blessings, cat (www.constantinchaos.blogspot.com)
I know Who I am by Israel Houghton is my fave song right now.
I’ve been encouraged by a song a friend of mine wrote, “Everything is in It’s Rightful Place”: http://soundcloud.com/caleb-murphy/everything-is-in-its-rightful
My favorite line is: “When you love, you make me come home…”
He has another song (unreleased) that says, “Your great love’ll pull me home/from the furthest graveyard stone.” Really encouraging, reminding me that the entirety of my identity rests in what God has done in me.
I love and am forced to slow down by the song “this is the stuff” by Francessca Battestille
This post reminded me of one of my favorite songs. Matthew Smith’s “All I Owe”. So many lines in this song speak the same truth that you have in this post. Thanks!
When this passing world is done, When has sunk yon glaring sun,
When we stand with Christ in glory, Looking o’er life’s finished story,
Then, Lord, shall I fully know—Not till then, how much I owe.
And all I owe you paid for me, From all I owe I’ve been set free
And all I owe proves your great mercy to me
When I stand before Your throne, Dressed in beauty not my own,
When I see You as You are, Love You with unsinning heart,
Then Lord, shall I fully know—Not till then, how much I owe.
Chosen not for good in me,Wakened up from wrath to flee,
Hidden in the Savior’s side, By the Spirit sanctified,
Teach me, Lord, on earth to show, By my love, how much I owe.
Perfect message for me today (and I so needed to hear the J.J. Heller song!).
Matthew Wests “The Motions” is a song that I think about every single day.
God used you and your message to tell me exactly what I needed to hear today. I am thankful to Him for putting this message in your heart and thankful that you took the time to write! Endless blessings to you and your family… thank you for encouraging others.
So beautiful!!! Thank you.
Peoples praise ceased when I left career to embrace who God created me to be as woman- and it hurt, and the more I embrace it, the more children I have the more people question and ridicule. How true…”Whatever is in any way beautiful hath it’s source of beauty in itself. Praise forms no part of it, so it is none the better or the worse for having been praised. -Marcus Aurelius” In me the source of beauty is Christ, the more I abide the more I can let the question “what do you do” describe me and the more I can let Christ define me.
“Well marinated in His love…”
I like that.
Great post!