Identity

“Who is this, that even the wind and sea obey him?” (Mark 4:41) The Gospel tells us of a time when Jesus' disciples were caught in a terrifying storm. Waves crashed into their boat as the wind howled. They panicked and cried out, but Jesus was asleep. When they woke Him, He didn’t panic with them. He stood in His authority and commanded the storm, and the storm obeyed. In their fear, the disciples revealed that they did not yet understand who Jesus was. Jesus preached on fait

In the quiet of prayer or the chaos of daily life, we may find ourselves asking: Who am I, really? Am I the roles that I fulfill? My thoughts? My emotions? My past? Am I the pain I carry? Am I the sum of my failures or successes? Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) answers this with a confusing term called self-as-context. But it gives a more descriptive term for therapeutic use: the observing self. The observing self is framed as the "you" that is aware of your thoughts,