Who Are You?

By guest writer, Amy Berglund.

“Who are you?”

The words jumped off the page

and pierced my heart in a rare

moment of Friday morning solitude.

“Who are you?

What do you say about yourself?”

Reacquainting myself with that most ancient and beautiful of biblical books, the book of John, I began reading. A book I’ve read countless times. A book whose opening verse I have always loved: “In the beginning was the Word (Logos), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.” A book, though familiar, that still had a new Word for me today.

Logos

I have a note in the margin of my Bible that equates the Greek word for Word - Logos - with the “power of speech”. Being the lover of theater and music that I am, I have always understood that words have power; speech has power; when set to music, sometime those words have even more power, and another of my favorite verses is Zephaniah 3:17 - “He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”

Words have power, and throughout human history - indeed it seems even more so today - we identify ourselves with a slew of words that hold great power over us: man or woman, mother or father, child or sibling, fat or thin, success or failure, rich or poor, sick or healthy, happy or sad, old or young, powerful or powerless, popular or unseen, worthy or unworthy, loved or abandoned, straight or gay, and the unending strand of letters that purport to tell us who we are. It’s the ultimate party question - who are you and what do you do?

The question of our “identity” is one that - for most of us - is met with unending angst and a constant striving to make that identity more acceptable to those voices we’ve chosen to let in to our innermost thoughts, those voices who constantly critique us. It’s the question we all ask ourselves, in the midst of those quiet, dark places we tend to go.

John the Baptist, when faced with this soul rattling question - “Who are you?” - goes to none of those adjectives but immediately identifies who he is in relation to who Jesus is: “I am not the Christ…I am the voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’” John identified himself as one who speaks God’s Words given to him, the Words which point all humankind to Jesus; who answered the question “What do you say about yourself?” with “I am unworthy to untie the thongs of His sandals.”

Mission

What impresses me about John is that he knew exactly who he was and was immediately prepared to answer the question, “Who are you?”. No hesitation, no mental categorizing of the endless adjectives we use to identify ourselves. John knew that who he was in relationship to Messiah was the only identifier that mattered. John knew his mission on this earth was to point those around him to “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” John had spent his entire life preparing to fulfill who he was meant to be in light of who he was in God. In the Logos. He was secure in the knowledge of his place in God’s mission, and that was his sole identity. We do not see him bringing out his credentials as a learned Rabbi jockeying for position amongst the educated society elite of his day, and not once does he try to use to his advantage his earthly relationship to Jesus as his cousin. No, John is completely secure in his identity as a child of God, placed on this earth to point others to the source of their true identity as well.

Identity

When we are physically born, we are given by our Creator exactly one physical, human identifier - male or female. Both equal to each other and both, I believe, mirroring one half or the other of God Himself. An immutable characteristic. We are made is His image - the “Imago Dei”, and the book of Genesis tells us when He looked upon the man and the woman, the crown jewels of His amazing creation, “God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.” (Gen. 1:31) At the very moment of mankind’s creation, before any human flourishing or work had begun, before the first man and woman produced or created anything at all, we were already very good simply because God said so. His Logos was enough to secure our identity in Him.

When we are spiritually born again (if as conscience humans we make that choice), we choose another God given identifier - a follower of Christ. As humans, we all have the free will to choose that part of our identity - to become a child of the King - the great, high God. And in light of these two identifiers, all other categories find their place or not. Some of them are true, good and accurate descriptors, and others are destructive lies, but they are all ultimately subservient to who God says we are - a very good daughter or son of the King of the Universe. That is all, and that is enough. You are already enough in Him. All other labels must be evaluated in this - in His - Light. John describes the Christ, the Word, the Logos, as the “life that was the light of men.” (John 1:4) He is our Light, and the ultimate answer to the questions John so easily answered about himself:

“Who are you? What do you say about yourself?”

When those questions are asked of you, can you answer as easily and as confidently as John?

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A sometimes inspired writer and a full time real estate agent, Amy is a 25-year Denver resident and vintage home aficionado who loves nothing more than helping her clients love where they live. Amy's unique background as a classically trained opera singer and former vocal instructor adds an individualized touch to her work as a broker, guiding clients through the transaction process with sharp attention to detail and appreciation of artistry she honed while training in the classical music world. Her deep passion and knowledge of Denver’s historic homes and neighborhoods are also evident in her personal life, as she and her husband have owned and renovated several historic homes over the years.

A fiercely loyal friend and advocate, Amy is also an active member of her community. She regularly volunteers with local organizations and events and is committed to giving back to the city that she loves most.

Amy met her husband, Jason, in college and they just celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary. Jason is a captain in the South Metro Fire Department and he and Amy have two beautiful daughters. Travel, gardening, and reading are some of her favorite activities.