I KNOW Who I AM!

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to attend a Women’s retreat at Restoration Station Christian Fellowship called Potter’s Clay. The theme of the retreat was “I Know Who I Am” which featured four dynamic female speakers who spoke candidly about their lives, insecurities, and spiritual journeys towards finding their purposes and destinies. They also encouraged and uplifted the women in attendance regarding finding their own purposes. Each speakers’ message differed from the next, but the content seemed to overlap, which many of the women believed to be confirmation from God. Although I was vending the event for Wear Your Confidence, I was still able to participate in the conference and a few of the activities.

The first speaker on Saturday was Pastor Kim Freeman from Canada, who I met over the summer in her home town. I particularly enjoyed her take on the retreat’s theme because she spoke about not fitting in and how okay and even important it is to stand out from the crowd. As far as pastors go, she definitely has an eccentric look and personality. She’s very outspoken, edgy, and opinionated, not to mention she sports very unique hairstyles and clothing; for many tradition church-goers, she doesn’t fit the mold of a female preacher and that’s what makes her great! As a younger woman, she was forced to dress and act a particular way in order to appease the old fashioned, more traditional church people that didn’t understand her uniqueness and her call to “not fit in”. I found her message so important especially when it comes to WYC because a huge part of being confident is understanding that it’s okay to not fit in. It’s okay to embrace your individuality and love the person that God created, not the person that man thinks you are or should be. Knowing who you are is also imperative to having confidence because once you know who you are, you can love who you are.

Another recurring topic of the retreat was about the “Enemy of Insecurity” and the circumstances under which our insecurities develop. It’s important to understand your insecurities and those defining moments that have helped shape you into the individual that you are today. Insecurity, during this session, was defined as “I am never _____ enough”. A great point that Pastor Joy Morgan, the host of the event, made was that if God needed you to be smarter, prettier, skinnier, etc., He would’ve made you that way. He made you the way that He intended for you to be so that you can walk in your purpose. This personally resonated with me because many times I have wished that I were “better” than how God made me to be not realizing that He made me this way because this was the way that He needed me. Knowing who I am includes knowing my insecurities and fighting through them so that I can ultimately discover my destiny.
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Initially I walked in to this conference just expecting to sit in the back and vend, but I walked away with a greater sense of my purpose and how I can overcome my insecurities to fit into God’s mold rather than everyone else’s. I’m realizing that God gifted me the interests and talents that I have because they are a part of my purpose! Take time to get to truly know yourself. If you’re someone who constantly wonders why you were put on this earth, take a look at what you love to do. What excites you? What groups of people do you want to work with or for? Answering those questions will help you know who you are and what you were created to do. I can confidently say that I’m starting to really know who I am.
 
Love always,
 
Gigi

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