My Identity is in Christ Alone!
Hey friends! My name is Raven Bone, and I’m a member of AC ‘21, I know…old, right?! No but really-as my time as a current member in this chapter is coming to a close, it is so sweet to look back on my time here. Specifically, it’s crazy to see how much The Lord has worked in my life.
My freshman year I was coming in from my small little town, wanting a fresh start. I prayed and prayed for the Lord to lead me to the right place during recruitment. I think I prayed during recruitment week more than I’d ever prayed before. I wanted it so bad-a place that truly loved me for who I was. Bit by bit, he revealed to me where I was supposed to be. I quickly realized I wanted that big white house with a real pretty yard. Most of all, I wanted to be one of the girls in it, making each girl that walked through the doors feel so loved and seen. I opened that bid…and cried tears of joy.
I know for a fact that God led me to this place, with this group of girls. They have uplifted me in more ways than I can count and seen me at my worst, most weakest moments and still loved me anyways. Taylor, Emma, Eden, Riley & Gracie-thank y’all for being the best friends to me always and being there for me the entire year of 2023! So many ups and downs but y’all were my constant and I know God blessed me so much with y’all. You’d never fail to help me with my exec duties and when things went crazy in my personal life y’all were by my side the whole time. Forever grateful for y’all!
I served as Vice President of Membership experience in 2023 and Grace Gaskin reached out to me and Emilee Robinson (Vice President of Member Development…and sweet friend of mine!) to disciple us through CRU ministries. Discipleship in ADPi typically looks like an older girl mentoring a younger girl in their walk with Christ. It’s a sweet time of growing closer to each other and the Lord. God was really looking out for me when he placed the desire in Grace’s heart to disciple me…He knew I really needed it. I am so very grateful for Grace’s love, kindness, and compassion that she’s always had for me. I know that it is a byproduct of the love of Jesus flowing out of her. Talk about someone who’s seen me at my worst and still loved me anyways-she’s the definition of a Godly woman that you want to be your friend you confide in! Grace encouraged me pretty early to sign up for a spring break mission trip and I was one of the first to sign up in 2023 to go on a mission trip for spring break 2024.
The Lord worked in my life in huge ways I would’ve never thought of leading up to that mission trip and on the trip. Long story short, post mission trip, my life was forever changed. I surrendered a lot of things that The Lord was calling me to lay down at his feet that were keeping me from growing my relationship with Him. I realized through that trip that I had been missing out on a HUGE blessing of Christianity-pursing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. My life started to look a lot different, by the grace of God.
I knew that I needed to go back on the trip this year, taking into consideration that the last one was the best week of my life! Leading up to the trip, I knew that the Lord was going to do BIG things and that it’d be different but I wondered what exactly he was going to reveal to me. It all started to be revealed leading up to the trip what he was going to really teach me throughout the week. Grace Gaskin asked me to share my testimony during women’s time and I knew I needed to, so I said “of course!”. Then, once I sat down and realized that it meant revealing aspects of my life that were very deep and personal I started to get in the overthinking cycle and believe lies that were from the enemy.
The Lord met me in that mess and whispered the truth over and over- “Your identity is found in me alone. Nothing else. This story is a testament of that and you telling it will be a testament of that. Now go out there, use the gifts that I have given you to glorify me, only look to me-not everyone else and their opinions, let me use you as my vessel, and just trust me”. It was maybe one of the hardest things I’ve done, but I did it and shared my story with about 50 girls. The Lord used that moment to do so, so much and I feel immensely grateful that He chose me to be a part of other girls' redemption stories-especially some of my very own ADPi sisters!
The things of this world are fleeting, but we serve a God that is constant and everlasting (Isaiah 40:28).
He meets us in our mess and brokenness, with arms wide open waiting for us to run to Him. He uses our stories of brokenness and beauty to lead others to Him. That is, only if we set our pride aside, placing our identity in Him & nothing else. I got the opportunity to share my real, raw & messy testimony with the group of girls on this trip and it was such a blessing. We are all imperfect and fall short but that’s the point of the gospel-Jesus is perfect. Our God is perfect. We are not. And He knew we couldn’t do this life alone.
Although the Lord blesses us with gifts and puts us in places to further His Kingdom, we are not defined by those things.
As a daughter of The King, my identity is not in…
-My sorority
-My school or grades
-Others opinions of me
-My job
-My achievements
-My clothes
-My appearance
-My past
-My mistakes
My identity is found in Christ alone. And He says…
-I am wonderfully made (Psalms 139:14)
-I am free & forgiven (Galatians 5:1)
-I am never alone (Deuteronomy 31:8)
-I am new (2 Corinthians 5:17)
-I am a daughter of the King (2 Corinthians 6:18)
-I am bold (2 Corinthians 3:12)
-I am a temple in which God dwells (1 Corinthians 3:16)
…all by the Grace of God, through His son Jesus Christ. What a blessing. What a gift. What a thing to celebrate & share among all nations.
I was able to speak this truth over the little girl in the first photo. She reminded me much of myself, a little girl who always needed these truths & still needs them today. We made a pinky promise that she’d never forget just how much God loved her & how much I did too. I pray she’ll never forget it. I know I won’t.
While it’s so sad to leave this amazing town, these amazing people, and the big white house with a real pretty yard-I know that the Lord has so much more in store. The journey doesn’t end here-it’s just begun! My identity will remain in Him in all of the seasons of my life, so my circumstances will not define me. I am immensely grateful for my time here and for God blessing me so much in these 4 years. I love you Alpha Delt, and thank you Jesus for blessing me with the opportunity to be a girl inside that house that makes others feel more loved walking out than they did walking in. <3
With love,
Raven Bone - AC ‘21