Who Would You Be?

Earlier today I caught a glimpse of a triumphant Tiger Woods as he sunk a putt in a tournament that landed him his first victory in two years.  His signature "fist pump" was his immediate reaction.  It was obvious, he was more than elated to have a win under his belt after a long, dry season with no victories and tons of negative publicity.

They showed previous images of Tiger after losing tournament after tournament with a down-trodden face, no smiling and definitely no fist-pumping.  It was then, that I thought to myself, "Who would you be Tiger, if you NEVER won again?"  Then my thought went even further to all of Hollywood for a brief second....who would any of those people be if they weren't movie stars? 

Then the thought occurred to me, "Who would I be if everything was taken away?"  That is a scary thought and not one that I want to ponder on too long, but it did make me evaluate the question.  If all my "securities" were taken away, who would I be?  Do I ever get my identity from people and things that surround me? Do I get my identity by my works?  My husband?  Anything or anyone, other than Christ?  Not that I wasn't already aware of it, but those thoughts drove home just how very important it is to KNOW who I am in Christ in fullness and in leanness. 

Although it's not a thought I want to linger with forever, 'who would I be?' IS a thought I want to keep nearby because I never want to forget who I am.  Apart from God, I have no good thing.  Apart from God, I am nothing.  So if everything else is taken away, one thing remains:  Who I am in Christ. 

"O my soul, you have said to the LORD, You are my LORD,

my goodness is nothing apart from You." 

Psalm 16:2 NKJV