{"id":13572,"date":"2024-10-15T01:24:48","date_gmt":"2024-10-15T07:24:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/2c63790e-9abe-11e8-99ad-ca52c1e5b2af"},"modified":"2024-10-15T14:48:54","modified_gmt":"2024-10-15T20:48:54","slug":"10-things-that-dont-define-you","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Things That Don’t Define You"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our culture has many competing voices\u00a0attempting to define your life. Your job, your looks, your race, your relationship status \u2014 do these things really make you who you are? As a Christian, should they? If any of the items on this list disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?<\/p>\n

1. Relationship Status<\/h4>\n

Sometimes I feel like I\u2019m singled out<\/a> (get it?) as most of my friends are married with children. Singleness becomes a badge I wear that other singles look at with relief because they\u2019re not alone, while family members point to and discuss it during holiday meals. But really, I\u2019m just another person. I have an identity that doesn\u2019t revolve around my relationship status. I\u2019m not waiting for someone to fill a husband-shaped hole in my heart before I can be complete.<\/p>\n

2. Occupation<\/h4>\n

One of the first questions you ask a stranger to get to know them is, \u201cWhat do you do?\u201d And for good reason \u2014 our chosen professions can tell us a lot about each other. Sometimes it\u2019s easy to compare our jobs with others and feel superior if ours measures higher on whatever success scale we\u2019re using. In reality, the person working behind a fast food counter, the doctor, the painter, the social worker \u2014 they\u2019re all people who have value, with or without their jobs.<\/p>\n

3. Romantic Interests<\/h4>\n

When I love and respect someone, I care what they think about me. When I\u2019m dating, I also want to make a good impression. This can lead to acting in ways I think the other person wants me to behave. However, if I\u2019m constantly trying to guess what someone else wants, not only will I be uncomfortable, I won\u2019t attract the kind of guys I want to date in the first place. I\u2019d like to be unashamedly me with the person I spend the rest of my life with.<\/p>\n

4. Health<\/h4>\n

Our culture values people who are healthy and able. If we are physically or mentally deficient, we\u2019re often seen as people who have fewer contributions to make, and therefore less valuable to society. Identifying others by what they cannot do or identifying ourselves by what we cannot do is incredibly discouraging.<\/p>\n

5. Appearance<\/h4>\n

Because of a popular culture that is flooded with flawless actors and models, we put far too much value in physical appearance. I\u2019ve personally been self-conscious \u2014 what is this \u201cadult\u201d acne nonsense, anyway? \u2014 and get annoyed with myself for feeling that way. I don\u2019t put stock in what other people look like (not that I\u2019m complaining about Chris Hemsworth\u2019s casting as Thor, mind you), and I\u2019m certain my friends wouldn\u2019t care if I came to a party perfectly made-up in a dress or bleary-eyed in my pajamas.<\/p>\n

6. Wealth<\/h4>\n

Money is something I wish I didn\u2019t have to think about. I don\u2019t have very much of it; I wish I had more. Yet if I had more, I\u2019m not convinced I\u2019d be any more content with life than I am now. Wealth doesn\u2019t change who we are. In fact, it often brings more problems with it \u2014 or that\u2019s what I tell myself, anyway.<\/p>\n

7. Education<\/h4>\n

When I was in high school, college\u00a0was treated with the utmost reverence \u2014 that\u2019s where all the smart people went. If you went to trade school, or, heaven forbid, no school at all, you weren\u2019t as valuable. Now I\u2019m looking back at friends who became electricians, business owners, computer technicians, servers, or librarians without a professional degree \u2014 people who are perfectly content with their lives and filling much needed places in society \u2014 and realizing what a misguided attitude that was.<\/p>\n

8. Gender<\/h4>\n

If “Wonder Woman”\u00a0<\/em>has taught me anything, it\u2019s that gender usually doesn\u2019t define what you can and can\u2019t do. It\u2019s also not a catalyst for assumption-making; I might not like sports, but my reluctance to spend three hours watching one man throw a football to another and then tackle someone isn\u2019t because I\u2019m a woman, it\u2019s simply because I find it boring. Likewise, don\u2019t assume I can\u2019t beat you at “Mario Kart.”<\/em> Because I can.<\/p>\n

9. Race<\/h4>\n

I don\u2019t pretend to understand what it\u2019s like to be a person of color living in a primarily white society. All I can do is treat people of every race equally and refuse to base my own identity on the color of my skin.<\/p>\n

10. Emotions<\/h4>\n

Defining yourself by what you\u2019re feeling is a recipe for disaster, because emotions constantly change. It can also induce guilt, because if you\u2019re not feeling happy, you are therefore failing yourself. Sometimes it\u2019s OK\u00a0to not be OK. You\u2019re not less valuable\u00a0or less \u201cyou\u201d if you are sad or struggling with anger, regret, or depression. You might not feel like your normal self, but it doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re any less valued.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Though all the items on this list are part of who I am, they aren\u2019t what define me; they aren\u2019t why I\u2019m valuable as a human being. When Jesus was on earth, He didn\u2019t care about any of these things. He loved people who were poor and people who were rich, women and men, educated and uneducated. I\u2019m valuable because God says I am \u2014 for \u201cI have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me\u201d (Galatians 2:20<\/a>).<\/p>\n

I\u2019m valuable because I am loved by a God whose love is never-ending. My identity is not found in any of the things above, because they won\u2019t last; it\u2019s based on Someone bigger than myself, who knows me and created me, who encourages me to serve and respect others however they define themselves, and who accepts my brokenness.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2017 Allison Barron. All rights reserved.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Do the things on this list make you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":41789,"menu_order":0,"template":"","categories":[10,15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13572","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-personal-growth","category-spiritual-growth"],"yoast_head":"\n10 Things That Don't Define You - Boundless<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Who are you? Do the things on this list define you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"10 Things That Don't Define You\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Do the things on this list make you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Boundless\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/boundless.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-10-15T20:48:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/glenn-carstens-peters-1905921.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"4256\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2832\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"10 Things That Don't Define You\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Do the things on this list make you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/glenn-carstens-peters-1905921.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/\",\"name\":\"10 Things That Don't Define You - Boundless\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/10-things-that-dont-define-you-6705637e311aa.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-15T07:24:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-10-15T20:48:54+00:00\",\"description\":\"Who are you? Do the things on this list define you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/10-things-that-dont-define-you-6705637e311aa.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/10-things-that-dont-define-you-6705637e311aa.webp\",\"width\":1500,\"height\":1000,\"caption\":\"a man, smiling, content with how God defines his worth and being\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Blog Posts\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"10 Things That Don’t Define You\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/\",\"name\":\"Boundless\",\"description\":\"Find your place. Focus your future.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Boundless\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/boundless-logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/boundless-logo.png\",\"width\":1201,\"height\":289,\"caption\":\"Boundless\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/boundless.org\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"10 Things That Don't Define You - Boundless","description":"Who are you? Do the things on this list define you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"10 Things That Don't Define You","og_description":"Do the things on this list make you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?","og_url":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/","og_site_name":"Boundless","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/boundless.org","article_modified_time":"2024-10-15T20:48:54+00:00","og_image":[{"width":4256,"height":2832,"url":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/glenn-carstens-peters-1905921.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"10 Things That Don't Define You","twitter_description":"Do the things on this list make you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?","twitter_image":"http:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/glenn-carstens-peters-1905921.jpg","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/","url":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/","name":"10 Things That Don't Define You - Boundless","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/10-things-that-dont-define-you-6705637e311aa.webp","datePublished":"2024-10-15T07:24:48+00:00","dateModified":"2024-10-15T20:48:54+00:00","description":"Who are you? Do the things on this list define you who you are? If any of them disappeared or changed, what would you be left with?","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/10-things-that-dont-define-you-6705637e311aa.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/10-things-that-dont-define-you-6705637e311aa.webp","width":1500,"height":1000,"caption":"a man, smiling, content with how God defines his worth and being"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/10-things-that-dont-define-you\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Blog Posts","item":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"10 Things That Don’t Define You"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/","name":"Boundless","description":"Find your place. Focus your future.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#organization","name":"Boundless","url":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/boundless-logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/boundless-logo.png","width":1201,"height":289,"caption":"Boundless"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/boundless.org"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/13572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/blog"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog\/13572\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41789"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.boundless.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}