Years ago, if someone asked me where I was from, I would just say “Dallas” but then I’d always get the follow-up question…“No. Where are you REALLY from?”

So, to avoid that conversation, I now give everyone who asks a brief but all-encompassing bio…“I am Indian but I was born in the United States.”

On the flip side, when I visited India, the people there could take one look at me and know I was not REALLY from there either. Once I opened my mouth and attempted to speak our native language, their suspicions were confirmed.

I am proud to be Indian…and I am proud to be American. But sometimes I don’t feel like either one.

When we were talking to some friends about this recently, they wisely questioned my thoughts behind this and helped me get to the core issue:

I always feel like I am intruding.

But this doesn’t just translate to my country of residence or origin. It affects how I see my purpose. When I feel like I am on the outside looking in, I believe that what I have to offer isn’t that valuable.

You may not relate to the country dilemma, but maybe you have felt that way for different reasons. Regardless of the why, the fact is: External factors have caused us to doubt our ability to make an eternal impact.

I will remind myself of this and hopefully, encourage you too: that couldn’t be further from the truth.

God planned every part of me…from the year I was born to my nationality. He equipped me with talents and gives me His strength (and people around me) for my weaknesses. He put me in my family, in this country and has ordained each step I take…from work to church to the neighborhood I live in.

It may not always feel like we belong but God has us right where He wants us…for His ultimate purpose.

And that’s good news y’all.

Hebrews 11:8-10 (MSG) By an act of faith, Abraham said yes to God’s call to travel to an unknown place that would become his home. When he left he had no idea where he was going. By an act of faith he lived in the country promised him, lived as a stranger camping in tents. Isaac and Jacob did the same, living under the same promise. Abraham did it by keeping his eye on an unseen city with real, eternal foundations—the City designed and built by God.

~Anu

*Shout out to Advance Initiative who hosted a great conference about this topic.