Daughter of the King

This week, I was thinking about my relationship with God, my Abba and Father, and I asked myself, what does it mean to be a daughter of the King? First, I pictured myself as a small, little girl sitting peacefully in the hands of her Father, but she didn’t have a crown. Was she a princess? I realized in that moment that I know my identity as a daughter of the God, but sometimes I forget about my crown.

I kept thinking, and I saw a little girl playing dress up. She paraded through the living room with a plastic crown and clunky way-too-big heels and twirled around as if to ask, “Am I lovely? Am I beautiful? Do I really look like a princess?” Sometimes I feel like the little girl. I feel like I’m pretending and playing dress up. I feel like my shoes are too clumsy and big for me. I question if my crown’s real and wait for validation even thought I know who I am. What keeps me from living out what I believe?

Next I asked the Lord what it means to be a daughter of the King and how I live differently because I’m His kid. God showed me a princess, dressed in a ballgown, descending a staircase and walking in elegance and grace. She wasn’t doing anything special. She was just walking, but she was confident. There was an air of ease, lightness and peace.

I think being a daughter of the king and being a princess are different. They’re theoretically the same, but the title, Daughter of the King, carries more influence and authority to me. She’s not just any girl or any princess. She bears the name and favor of the king. She commands respect, walks with confidence, and is simultaneously graceful and fierce.

So, as I continue job hunting, I want to be a woman who lives like a daughter of the King. I don’t need to strive and earn my title, but I’ve been given the privilege and honor to represent my family and Father well. I keep reminding myself that a daughter of the King shouldn’t look like everyone else.

Though I find myself seeking normalcy, and there are pieces of me that still like to fit in and try to be a normal, my Abba has called me to something else. I’m not just any girl, and I don’t actually want to go back to a normal life. In this season, I am saying yes to simplicity and releasing everything in me that would love a full-time job with health insurance and 9-5 hours. I am choosing to raise support and trust God to provide even though I would love to be financially independent. This is a season of obedience, growth, discipleship, and wonderful community. This is what the Lord has for me right now, and I am choosing Him. I am remembering again and again that following Jesus is not part of a “normal” American life.

Following Jesus has changed my DNA, and I am set apart and different. I don’t have to imitate, appease, or impress anyone to earn my crown. I AM a daughter by design. Being a daughter of the King and wearing my crown is going to look like being me. Maybe being a daughter of the King just means waking up every day and choosing to walk in the elegance, grace, and authority I receive through my Father, the one, true King.