Who Am I?

By Benjamin ‘Raven’ Pressley

Who am I is a question, in my opinion, that we all need to ask ourselves and be able to answer. If you don’t know who you are it leaves you subject to any influence that comes around….

Who am I is a question, in my opinion, that we all need to ask ourselves and be able to answer. If you don’t know who you are it leaves you subject to any influence that comes around.

^“That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.”

—Ephesians 4:14

Ephesians 4:14 is well put I would say. This world is suffering from an identity crisis. And because most people don’t know who they are they wrap themselves up in all kinds of identities that still aren’t who they really are. People wrap themselves up in their sexuality, their race, their hate, even their religion; but guess what, any of those identities will not satisfy and will just lead to more frustration that usually gets took out on someone else.

As an example I ask myself this question. Who am I? I am a good friend to have. I have friends, not a lot but real friends not just Facebook friends, there is a difference. It is not about the quantity of friends you have but the quality. And I don’t know how long they will be around. People move on. Demands on their lives change. I am not a needy person. I don’t need affirmation from people or Facebook community. I don’t need affirmation or special attention from church people. I don’t need anyone to COMPLETE me because I am complete. I love, appreciate and enjoy the friends I have. I endeavor to be the best friend they have, but I will never cling to them, beg them to be my friend or put a drain on them. They can be my friend and enjoy all we are together or not. I like who I am just fine. My view about people who don’t want to be around me is…It’s their loss not mine.

Who am I? I am a person that does not let my emotions control me. I will not even get in an argument or discussion if it is largely emotional response. I will gladly speak to anyone on a subject if it interests me on an intelligent emotionless level. I had someone defend their emotional response saying they were an emotional person and they were not ashamed of that. They could not reinforce their arguments intelligently. To them it was about who could be the loudest and most emotional. My response was something to the effect of ‘  I don’t do emotional exchanges’. I just don’t. I don’t mind respectfully telling someone either A) I’m not interested in the subject and do not wish to discuss it or B) telling them they are too emotional about the subject and that I will not get into an emotionally charged rhetoric.

Who am I? I am a true warrior in life. A true warrior defends those unable to defend themselves. A true warrior knows who they are and is confident in whom they are and may or may not discuss it and certainly will not enter into an argument or discussion trying to convince another who they are. What another thinks about whether I am a warrior or not is irrelevant. I know who I am.

Who am I? I do not have to go into who I am in detail as a father, husband, etc. Those are offices I serve in. Those are services that who I am is played out in. They are not who I am. Who I really am determines how good of a father, husband, etc. that I am. Whatever I am to this person or that person are merely expressions of who I really am.

Do you see what I mean? Know yourself. On the surface some of the things I described about myself may seem harsh or uncaring but nothing is farther from the truth. These are spiritual wells I can draw from and because of my strength I can then be compassionate, caring or whatever I need to be.

Let me explain a concept that has helped me in understanding who I am. I don’t identify myself by my race, sexuality, religion, etc. I am able to be who I am fully because of who I am in the Creator and his expression into this world in Christ.  We are created of His essence and who He is. When we immerse ourselves in who He is is, when we realize all truth is a person and not some teaching or set of rules, we die to ourselves and arise into who we were really meant to be. If you immerse yourself in your sexuality or power or whatever it is you define yourself by you will be absorbed into that and will never be anything else. There will be some resemblance of satisfaction but that is just to throw you off so you will settle for something less than what you really are. When you immerse your identity in Christ it is the only thing you can immerse yourself in and not be lost. He shows you and allows you to rise up to what your full potential is; who you really are. He doesn’t require you to be some imitation of someone else. He shows you who you really are and He shows you how to be the best you that you can be and He gives you the power to achieve it. Your identity does not get absorbed into something that is temporary or that will ultimately lead you into a state of bondage. He shows you how free and powerful you really are. Then you will find yourself able to do things you could never dream of doing on your own. He places HIS heart within you and then you see like He sees; you love like He loves.

This is not a religious statement or meant to convert you to some religion it is just a truth you will have to ponder and pray for understanding. It is in no way telling you to imitate anyone including yours or someone else’s understanding of who Christ is. Jesus and for that matter other belief systems teach this concept. In the Bible it is described as ‘dying to self’. In this ‘all about me’ culture that makes no sense. Self esteem and you no matter how detrimental you are to yourself or society are king according to the mantra of this modern day and time. In true warrior societies they knew what it meant to lay down your life for another or for God and country knowing even the loss of your own life was to be valued if it served the greater good. We do ooo and ahhh the occasional hero’s story of doing this but we fail to apply it to ourselves. Don’t misunderstand me. I’m not telling anyone to go allow themselves to be killed for a greater cause. There are Muslims blowing themselves up for an utterly wrong ideal. Romans 12 adds to the understanding of this concept when it talks about being a ‘living sacrifice’. In other words it isn’t about promoting you any more it is about the greater good for all of creation and as a side benefit you become completely fulfilled and content and spiritually powerful. You really have to think outside the religious box to understand that this applies. So many reject something just because it was quoted from the Bible and their disbelief of this book or guilt by association as a religious book of the Christian who is usually associated with the Crusades or the missionaries who killed Native Americans. All I can say about that is don’t throw the baby out with the bath water.

Truth is so beyond religion. Truth is expressed in every living thing and is put into words in many different forms and peoples. Real truth can always be recognized as I say in my book series RAVENQUEST:

“If a message is truly the truth then no temple made by the hands of any created being will be able to contain it. Real truth is big enough to cover all of creation. To try to contain truth in a temple or to even try to organize it under one roof or one people or one set of beliefs is like caging a wild animal. It is cruel, it is against its natural design and eventually will only weaken as it loses its wild side and conform to its captivity and as a result it would only produce other caged animals. Truth by design should set one free not put one in a cage.”—Mitra the Oracle, Book 5 of RAVENQUEST, ‘Stars Will Fall’

Ponder these sayings and you will be free and you will know who you really are.

We Are Warriors

Dr. Bohdi Sanders shares another thought on being a warrior in life.

All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. Sophocles

The warrior is many things. He is a man of honor, integrity and character. He is a man of courage and a hero if need be. He is a superior man in the sense of his lifestyle and character. But there is one thing that he is not – a perfect man. All men make mistakes, including the warrior. All of his decisions will not be correct, even though he will try his best to make them so. There will be times when he slips and makes mistakes that he will regret; this is simply part of being human.

Something to think about

— As we grow older, and hence wiser, we slowly realize that wearing a $300 or a $30.00 watch – – they both tell the same time. Whether we carry a $300 or a $30.00 wallet/handbag – – the amount of money inside is the same. Whether we drink a bottle of $300 or $10 wine – – the hangover is the same. Whether the house we live in is 300 or 3000 sq. ft. – – loneliness is the same.
You will realize, your true inner happiness does not come from the materialthings of this world.
Therefore, I hope you realize, when you have mates, buddies and old friends, brothers and sisters, who you chat with, laugh with, talk with, have sung songs with, talk about north-south-east-west or heaven and earth – – That is true happiness!!

SIX UNDENIABLE FACTS OF LIFE:
1. Don’t educate your children to be rich. Educate them to be Happy. So when they grow up they will know the value of things not the price.
2: Best awarded words: “Eat your food as your medicines. Otherwise you have to eat medicines as your food.”
3: The One who loves you will never leave you because even if there are 100 reasons to give up he or she will find one reason to hold on.
4: There is a big difference between a human being and being human. Only a few really understand it.
5. You are loved when you are born. You will be loved when you die. In between, You have to manage!
6: If you just want to Walk Fast, Walk Alone! But if you want to Walk Far, Walk Together!

SIX BEST DOCTORS IN THE WORLD:
1. Sunlight
2. Rest
3. Exercise
4. Diet
5. Self Confidence and
6. Friends/Family
Maintain them in all stages of Life and enjoy a healthy life.
The older we get, the fewer things seem worth waiting in line for. —Author Unknown