"Who am I?  Where do I belong?, and What is my purpose? are central questions to the life of every individual on the face of the earth, whether you have lost both of your parents, one parent, or neither parent.  Who we are is grounded in the place of family.  The past, present, and future all are held together in the story of our family.  We are a part of something bigger than ourselves.  Family speaks to the core of our identity.  The loss of family and specifically the loss of fatherhood leads to a loss of identity, belonging, and purpose.  The loss of identity in the life of a child is the foundational place of the wounding of an orphan's heart.  Without a clear sense of identity, belonging, and purpose will never be found.  What is the answer?  The gospel and...(can you guess?)...family." -exerpt from In Pursuit of Orphan Excellence by Philip Darke and Keith McFarland

Lately, I have been overwhelmed by the importance of one's identity: not only for the children we serve but in my personal walk as well.  For example, this book (quoted above) had been sitting on my shelf for a year, and finally made its way into my daily reading.  WOW!  It's all about the orphan's heart and how their identity is a huge part of that wound; or, in our hope the truth of their identity in Christ: their healing.

I have so much to learn about this subject and all that social orphans, poverty orphans, half-orphans, and true orphans suffer through simply because they are growing up in this broken world.  And I can't express how grateful I am to the Father for showing Jorge and myself this part of His heart and an orphan's need.  

Apparently, it is a message God was already trying to plant in us because today a dear friend here in Honduras reminded me of a blog I wrote (more like the Lord wrote because I didn't even remember it) this past June.  I'm in awe at God's detail in everything as He prepares and equips us more and more each day to know His heart for the orphans we desire so strongly to serve in excellence.  "Teach us, Lord, how to carry the message of identity to your kids."

http://taraimhis.blogspot.com/2014/06/nurturing-identity.html is the past blog!  

Maybe the love of Jesus has been remolding your heart too, to know who you are in Christ.  To know that your identity doesn't lie in what job you do, the house you live in, where you come from, or what ministry you're a part of.  But our identity lies in the fact that Jesus took our place and gave us His.  We are royalty, forgiven, whole, complete, righteous, and ALL that envelopes the goodness of our Savior and His promises to us!  It's an amazing message!  Join us in sharing it with the least of these!

Identity Mission will be holding these Identity Days throughout the year for all the orphanages across Honduras.  The focus is to continue teaching aspects of identity in Christ to the point that the children don't doubt one bit who they are in Christ!  

Join us:

1.  Donate today at www.identitymission.org to fund Identity Days and reaching orphans with this important truth!  

2.  Share with us any aspect of our Identity in Christ that you feel has impacted you in living victoriously!  That way we are equipped with identity messages throughout the year!  

3.  Bring a mission team to share an aspect of our identity in Christ message and volunteer in an orphanage by supporting the home through much-needed projects!

4.  Gather a group and do a fundraiser at home to raise funds for age-appropriate Bibles and devotionals for an orphanage, so the children can continue on a daily basis to learn the truth of the life God's Son bought for them on the cross!

Tara Garcia