Have you ever broken a bone, well I have, many times actually. I grew up with many brothers so I was always active as a hyper kid. When I was young I often ended up in the hospital with stitches and things like that. I recently hurt my wrist a few weeks ago from falling when skateboarding.

I didn’t notice the pain before but tonight as I was painting a wall I felt the pain. It’s nothing too serious, it’s just this annoying feeling that sometimes comes. Luckily I felt it near the end when I was almost finished but still it occurred to me that this might be something that could possible hold me back from graffiti for a few months.

On many occasions as I would speak to teens I would say from the stage, “my identity is not in the things that I do. I’m a daughter of a king, that’s who I am.” Tonight I was faced with a moment where I had to practice out what I say and believe.

It’s true, it doesn’t matter if graffiti were to be taken away from me, that’s not who I am and my life doesn’t depend on it. I’m not at all saying I’m finished with it but let’s just say “what if?” I’m a follower of God and I don’t live my faith out by what I’m feeling. If we choose to love God based on how we are feeling, I think we would give up to fast.

As I wrestled through what word to do in this dark, cold, hidden basement of my church I came up with the word Peace. Peace is something that can come right when you are having a hard time in life, when no one else gets you, no one knows the things you go through and yet God does and at that perfect moment he brings peace.

Jesus brings peace in your pain! Please don’t base your identity on the things you do because those can be taken away in a second. That’s not who you really are. Ask God to show you how to be the person that he has created you to be.

—————————————————————————————————————————————-laura

Laura Bronson is co-founder and director of Keep It Real, a youth movement which
uses the mediums of skateboarding, graffiti, and rap to tell the stories of a God who is alive today.