...just a mom.
...single.
...female.
...injury prone.
...emotional.
...what you see on Facebook.
...a small business owner.
...a single mom.
...a daughter.
...an ex-wife or ex-girlfriend.
...a friend.
...creative and/or crafty.
...a thinker.
...loyal (to a fault sometimes).
...photographer.
...seamstress.
...active.
...a caregiver.
...an encourager.
...what you see on the outside.
...etc....etc...etc... (You could fill in your own blanks here).
I am so much more than just one adjective. I cannot be summed up in a single word, or by labeling me as just one aspect of my life. I'm not just a single mom. I'm not just a mom of teenagers. I'm not just a mom of a kid with special needs. I'm not JUST anything.
I am more.
Just like both my daughters are more than just red or brown haired. Short tempered. Teenagers. Opposites. Whatever you could say to describe them or me. You can't base what you think about a person based on one characteristic anymore than you can judge a book by its cover.
So why is it that this happens so often? Why is there a tendency to make snap decisions based off of what your newsfeed decides to show you on Facebook? (Side note: please don't judge anyone based off what you see on fb...especially when algorithms decide what you are even shown of their posts...and the fact that no one puts every single detail of their life on fb). Why categorize people and then only see them as one category? No one on the face of this planet is just married or just single...there is soooo much more to life than that. I don't know a single soul that wants to be known as only single or only married or only a parent/not a parent, or just by their hair color.
I realize that this can be a part of life. That everyone sees the people around them through their own, sometimes jaded, point of view. That sometimes that plays in your favor and sometimes hurts insanely.
But why? Why do we choose to live like that? Why do we judge others, because honestly that's what it boils down to...especially when there is NO WAY we know all the circumstances. What happened to compassion and grace and choosing to see the best in each other and being our best self around each other? Why does love and mercy get lost and not freely shared?
Remember the old wwjd that used to be so popular? What would Jesus do? He befriended sinners but loved the person...seeing way more than their shortfalls and provided hope, love, mercy, grace, compassion. He met them where they were, but showed them how to move forward in healing. He gave freely of Himself...not with ulterior motives or planning what He would get back in return. He saw the whole picture, the big picture, and knew who He was living for...that have Him a confidence only found in living out your calling...living sold out for the Father.
Now, I know we aren't Jesus. We are human, not perfect and sinless. But in His power, we can live different. We can choose not to waste time judging others. We can spend more time working on changing ourselves and becoming the best version of ourself as we walk the path He has for each one of us. We can choose to not categorize, or stick people in boxes we never allow them to climb out of. We can choose to react different and realize we don't see or get every detail...and maybe the way we took it wasn't the way it was meant. Because each of us could write our own list of "I am more than..."
