Finding Identity and Strength in God

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Welcome to the Catholic sobriety podcast mini-soad . These shorter episodes provide quick tips and information that you can refer back to when you need it most so you can achieve and maintain your desired level of sobriety . I am your sobriety coach and host of this podcast , kristi Walker . Let's get started . This past weekend , I was blessed with an opportunity to give a reflection during a Catholic women's retreat at my parish . Now , when I have these opportunities , I have come to expect that , even after everything is written and finalized , god is definitely going to give me something else he wants me to say or edit . And this usually happens as I'm in a mad rush to get ready that morning and head out the door , but when he prompts me , I have learned to stop and do what he asks . This time was no exception , but it happened while I was making dinner the Thursday night before the retreat . I was going over the retreat and this reflection in my mind as I'm cooking dinner and I was telling myself I just had a few edits that I needed to make . And that is when I heard God say yeah , we're not going to do that one , I've got something else for you . And I was like wait , lord , I'm almost done , can't I just make a few changes ? And he said , no , I think I'm gonna need you to start over . So I took a deep breath and I told God , let's do this Now . Thankfully , this is only like a 10-minute reflection , so it wasn't too time-consuming , and when I am being guided by the Holy Spirit , words pour out of me at a quicker pace . Now I share this with you because the focus of this reflection is on three words contained in Isaiah 43.1 . You are mine . Here's the whole verse for context . But now , thus says the Lord who created you and formed you Do not fear , for I have redeemed you , I have called you by name . You are mine . Isn't that just incredible . I hope that after you listen to this , in the days and weeks ahead you will pray with that scripture and have a conversation with God about it , because it is a great conversation starter , for sure .

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Now , when we are rooted in our identity as beloved daughters of God and we know and believe that we are His , it's easier to shift our mindset , allowing us to think in heavenly ways instead of worldly ones . The gifts of the Holy Spirit empower us to do this , and when that happens , our relationship with the Lord deepens and we can hear His voice more clearly and thus be obedient to His will . This means that when the Lord makes a request that perhaps doesn't quite make sense , like I don't know , having to completely rewrite a perfectly good reflection we can be obedient to Him , knowing that he has His reasons and , as Romans 8.28 tells us , he is working all things out for the good of those who love Him . Over the past year , I have become increasingly comfortable being uncomfortable for God . Now I have many examples that I could share , but in the interest of time I will just share the biggest one . At last year's Women's Retreat , I leaned hard into the discomfort and in an effort to illustrate how our spiritual gifts empower and equip us to live out our purpose despite our shortcomings , I shared my story of recovery from alcohol addiction with the over 100 participants who are present . Mind you that this was after nearly two decades of rarely speaking about my recovery and pretty much telling myself that it was a rather insignificant thing for me to do and maybe , just maybe , not as difficult as I kept remembering it . But God reminded me that it was important , it was significant and telling it would help others . He told me that it was time to share my story for His glory . He told me that keeping it to myself wasn't helping anyone and he needed me to talk about it . And now I can honestly say that not a day goes by that I do not speak about sobriety and recovery and what God has done in me and through me . The Lord reminded me you are mine .

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Lately I feel like the Samaritan woman , the woman at the well who had a transformative encounter with Jesus , who came to believe that he was the Son of the Living God . After this encounter , she cared little about the shame she had once felt and instead runs through town telling anyone who will listen come and see . Come and see this man . He told me everything I had ever done . Could he be the Messiah ? She is saying come and see Jesus , come and be transformed , come and see for yourself . And when we share our stories , that's what we are saying too . So , as the story goes , after the men went to see Jesus and spent a few days with Him , they came back and they told the woman we no longer believe just because you said . Now we have heard for ourselves .

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Saying yes to God isn't always easy , but we should always look to our blessed mother for strength and inspiration and ask for her powerful intercession . Every time I am obedient and give God my yes , my heart is set ablaze and it deepens my relationship with Him in an extraordinary way . But what is even more remarkable is to see how my yes to him allows him to reach others . Thank you , jesus , because I believe that I am his and he is mine . My fear of man , meaning my fear of what others may think about me , has diminished considerably Not completely , but considerably .

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It is much easier for me to trust and heed the words of St Paul in Romans 12,2 , where he says do not conform yourselves to this world , but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that you may discern the will of God , what is good and pleasing and perfect . And 2 Timothy 2,21 tells us therefore , if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable , he will be a special instrument set apart , useful to the master and prepared for every good work . We are set apart , sisters , and prepared for every good work . Through the waters of baptism and every time we cleanse ourselves with the mercy of God , through the sacrament of reconciliation , we are made new , we are made whole and we are a special instrument prepared for every good work . God tells us you are mine . And when we root ourselves in that fact and truly believe and claim it , we will experience a fire in our soul and kindled with our love for him .

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When we renew our minds , by shifting our mindset from a worldly perspective to a divine and heavenly perspective , it's like we are straightening our crowns , dusting off our fine garments , smoothing out the wrinkles and walking into life with our heads held high , knowing that we are not the sum of our weaknesses , but instead redeemed by the blood of Christ and daughters of a king .

Faith and Connection With God

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And despite what the father of lies likes to tell us , our identity doesn't lie in what we have done or what's been done to us . It's not about the things we do , it's not about the things we have , it's about who's we are . And God tells us you are mine . I hope you believe that , sisters , and if you do , that is a grace and a gift and I invite you to share it with others , starting with those closest to you . Well , that wraps up today's episode , today's episode of the Catholic Subriety Mini-Sode . Thank you so much for joining me and please be sure to subscribe to this podcast so you don't miss a thing and remember I am here for you , I am praying for you . You are not alone .