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Day 15 – Where is our Home Base?

Cantonese

Mandarin

English

Coming to his senses he thought, "How many of my father's hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger."

(Luke 15:17)

Whether we admit it or not, we are all wandering in our own distant country, away from home, in different ways and to a different extent.

We have received from God countless gifts like our talents, time, and treasures. But instead of using them the way they are intended for, we have "squandered" our inheritance on selfish motives and interests. Without the source of all graces and providence on our side, every resource we have and every satisfaction dry up quickly, evaporating into nothingness, leaving us empty.

This emptiness and brokenness within us should eventually lead us to realize that our God is the only one we can turn to for healing and fulfilment. If we persist in digging deeper, we will begin to realize that we are made by and for God. Therefore, we are meant to be in a relationship with Him, which means we need to mend that broken relationship.

Back view cropped picture of multiethnic group

Either purposely or unintentionally, we are in search of our own identity — which we might loosely define as “who I am in the eyes of those around me”, or “how I define and differentiate myself”, or “how I should look and behave in front of others”.

If I base my identity on how I would like others to perceive me, I lose sight of my true identity in God"s eyes.

Our "distant country" is a hostile place that corrupts us and robs us of our true identity. It is especially true as we pursue worldly goals and base our identity on our own accomplishments, possessions, popularity and power. The more successful we are in attaining these worldly desires, the further away we may be from our true self. We have subconsciously put up a false self, wearing a mask without our knowing. Even if we base our identity on our purpose in life, or even on our mission, we can easily be misled to measure ourselves based on our performance, or on how successful we are in terms of our mission. That also, is a false identity.

The only way we can find our true self is when we base our identity on our relationship with God, that we are our Heavenly Father's beloved sons and daughters. It assures us that our identity will never be changed or shaken — we are loved no matter what.

Whether we are successful in life or whether we are respected and loved by others will never change our Father's love for us. Even if we are at our worst, our rock bottom, or in our most sinful condition, God still loves us all the same! This realization should change our lives forever. This new lens allows us to see ourselves, others and the world through the eyes of God.

When that magic moment finally comes, our eyes will be open and we will realize that we are in our distant country. We will be surprised how far away we have been from the Father's House in a spiritual sense. The awareness of our true identity as children of God further awakens our senses that the one who loves us most is waiting for us to return to Him.

REFLECTION

How do you perceive yourself? Do you base your own identity on how others see you or how the world defines you?

What is your anchor in life?

TODAY'S PRAYER

Dear Heavenly Father, how naive have I been to allow others and the world to define my own identity, and how misled I have been to believe that my accomplishments define my worthiness. Now I have realized that You are my true anchor in life. It is You who have remained faithful all these years when the world has deserted me. Lord, help me set my priorities right, to put the most important relationship first, that is, my relationship with You, my Father! Never allow me to take You for granted but to cherish Your love every day of my life! I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

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15 Comments

Linda Chan on March 4, 2021 at 8:46 pm

I have heard a saying that I would rather you hate a true me than love a false me. I want others to perceive me as a loving person, a devoted Catholic. However, if this is not coming out of love for our Heavenly Father, I would find myself easily burned out in pretending to be one. Even if I can deceive the whole world and even myself, I cannot deceive God. God made everyone unique with our different talents and I pray that I have the wisdom to fully utilize those in glorifying God.
Marie Bernadette Cheng on March 4, 2021 at 9:08 pm

I perceive myself, is not affected by what others see me nor how the world defines me.
My anchor in life is Jesus. He is my true anchor in my life.