I Am vs I Do

I'm a youth minister.
I do youth ministry.

No matter if the above statements, for you, have to do with plumbing, engineering or accounting...
One is healthy.
The other is not.

When I was between jobs in 2008 one of the worst things was the loss of identify.

I dreaded the introductory question of "what do you do?" because I had no real reply.

Perhaps I needed to listen closer to the question.

When we ask someone about their job we aren't asking them about their identity. Although they can be tightly entwined, the query asks WHAT YOU DO, not WHO YOU ARE.

We need to change our response.

For I AM a husband.
I AM a son.
I AM a father.
I AM a Christian.
But I DO youth ministry.