The Ampersand

The Amper…what? The Ampersand. You read that right. The ampersand is simply the symbol that means AND. Have you ever thought much about it? I sure hadn’t until recently. For such a tiny word it packs a pretty powerful punch. In the Bible it bridges gaps, helps us to understand narratives and gives a flow of connectedness. For example in John 1:1 , “In the beginning was the Word, AND the Word was with God, AND the Word was God.” In this scripture John is telling the readers his first hand account of who Jesus is. Here John is explaining to us that Jesus is the Word.  Later John goes on to say that “The Word became flesh.” THAT’S JESUS!  This scripture is giving us the both/AND of who Jesus is. Or how about, John 13:13, “You call me teacher AND Lord, and rightly so, for that is what I am.” Here we see that Jesus is so much more than just a teacher, He is Lord.  The disciples recognized this because they were walking in close proximity to Him. Again Jesus is both/AND. Let’s go for one more, take a look at Revelation 1:8, “I am the Alpha AND the Omega—the beginning AND the end,” says the Lord God. “I am the one who is, who always was, AND who is still to come—the Almighty One.” Y’all Jesus is everywhere (He is omnipresent), He’s the real deal. He has been here from the beginning, He will be here until the end.  He is here now, He always has been and one day He will return to this Earth to take us to be with Him in Heaven.

‭ For years I wore many of hats. I guess you could say I have been both/AND a lot. Obviously, not like Jesus, but in a daily living kind of way.  I have been Eddie’s marketing rep, his wife, his business partner, a mom, a volunteer, a friend, a board member, a para professional, an ambassador, a business owner, a small group leader, a mentor and most recently an author….you get the picture. Over the years, I have been a lot of things to a lot of people and I often found it difficult to intertwine them. In my book He Is The Vine; From The Vineyard To The Tasting Room I wrote a chapter about labels and how they can begin to define us if we are not careful. There was a season of life that I would show up at the end of the day with 5 different name badges on. It was ridiculous, but the thing is, I was finding my worth in the badges I was wearing. At one point in my life if someone asked me about myself I immediately went to whatever I was trying to “sell” in that moment. I wasn’t being my genuine self. Think about when you meet someone for the first time. What do you ask them? I bet one of the top five questions you ask is, “So, what do you do?” It’s easy, it starts a conversation, and most people like to talk about themselves. It’s safe and non commital. It’s small talk. Bob Goff suggests asking deeper more personal questions, like, “What does it feel like to be you today?” Or “How’s your life working for the people closest to you?” Talk about some self reflection! This allows the individual to shift their mindset from their work title to who they really are. It still gives them the ability to talk about themselves, LOL. BUT it takes the conversation to the next level without the small talk or label that normally seems to define them. It provides deeper thought and connection. It allows room for the both/AND. I can be a mom AND a daughter of the King. You can be a teacher AND a child of God. The only one of those titles that should define us is the one where we belong to Him. Over the course of our life, we will carry a lot of titles, but the one that we need to hold with highest regard is the one where we are His!

I actually began to ponder the word “&” when my therapist was helping me wrap my head around who I am these days. For those that know me you know that Eddie and I “retired” last year. I put that in quotes, because when I say retired I say it very loosely because I am pretty sure we are the busiest we have ever been. I am not complaining. I am living my best life, but after a life of schedules and routines, I have found it really difficult to accomplish all that I want to do in a single day. I am kinda like that squirrel that many of us have seen running around. With me being so scattered I have struggled with not so much of who I am, but what God is wanting of me in this season of life. I have spent my life going ninety to nothing and to slow down sounds a little terrifying, but it has also left me a little lost. I am just being honest. I don’t know how to just be. I worry if I will be a good steward with where God has placed me, will I puff up and become to full of myself, do I want to make myself shine or do I want to make Jesus shine. In her book, Chasing Famous, Lisa Lloyd talks about making Jesus Famous. That’s truly what I want to do. It is not about me, but I have to learn to embrace the life God has blessed me with, the talents He has given me. If I sit on them, I am no better than the man in the parable of the talents that hid his talents for safe keeping. God doesn’t equip us with special talents, relationships or finances (for that matter) to sit on them.  He equips us to share the good news, to be His hands and feet and to spend our time in this world making Him famous.That’s what I hope to do in everything I do, I want to make Jesus famous. So whether I am writing my next book, teaching a marriage class, writing a blog, posting on social media, volunteering at church, delivering donuts,starting a podcast, dipping my toe into public speaking or just spending time with friends, I want my life to represent Jesus. As I was pouring all this out to my therapist and telling her the weight I feel with it all, the responsibility that comes with it all,  she walked over and took a little wooden ampersand off of her shelf. She told me that I could be both/AND.  I can still be Donna that loves big, lives exuberantly AND still walk in the way that God is leading me. I just need to show up and let Him lead. What’s your AND? As you walk into 2026, what is God calling you into? What is stopping you? If God has called you to, He will equip you for it. You can be you AND walk in His calling (even if, especially if it seems uncomfortable to you). He does His best work when we step out of our comfort zone.