My Father’s Identity

By |Published On: June 16, 2019|Categories: Joni's Posts|

It being Father’s Day, it is no surprise that I’m remembering John King Eareckson, my Daddy. I was born to him late in life, the last of four daughters. I loved being his little buddy, shadowing him around the farm, working hard to mimic him. Whether it was how he curried the horses or mixed his paints on a canvas, I studied him and did my best to be the family’s “little John.” Even though it’s been nearly thirty years since he passed away at the age of 90, his influence is so present in my life.

My father often told me, “Remember, Joni, when you leave the house, you carry the good name of the Eareckson family.” It was a continual reminder of my identity, roots, and my relationship with my father. Daddy was well-known in our little corner of Maryland—he’d been an alternate wrestler in the 1936 Olympics. He coached wrestling for years, and he was even inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. And when he told us to remember we were “Earecksons”, that fact protected us when we were out of his sight.

That sense of protection and being “grounded” in truth is one reason why the Bible speaks so much about our identity in Christ. We are a “chosen people” (1 Thessalonians 1:4), an “inheritance” (Ephesians 1:18), “forgiven” (1 John 2:12), and “children of God” (1 John 3:1), just to name a few. Even though John Eareckson gave me a rich identity from which to live, the identity I have in my heavenly Father far outshines it. It’s the same for you.

If your dad is still on this earth, thank him for the ways he has contributed to your sense of identity. And then thank your heavenly Father for the powerful purpose you have as a result of the identity he has given you.

–Joni Eareckson Tada

Joni: An Unforgettable Story

This commemorative 45th anniversary edition features updated photos, as well as an all-new chapter in which Joni describes her battle against two different bouts of cancer, her daily struggle with chronic pain, and the joys of leading a global outreach to people living with disability.

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