I was raised in Goliad, one of the oldest settlements in Texas with a population of just over 2,000 people. There were not many people around who looked like me when I was growing up. In fact, there were only a handful of African American families in the county. Of all the athletes on my sports teams and cheer team, I was usually the only black person. Not only was my skin color obviously very different, but so was my hair. I have always been told by other black people that I have “good hair,” but for me, I didn’t feel like it.

In our town, if you were athletic you played the majority of the sports. Some of my teammates and I would play a volleyball game, then quickly change into our cheer uniforms to go out and cheer for our football team. My teammates could pull their hair out of the ponytail and brush it out and be ready to go, but for me it was different. Every so often, I would get a treatment to make my hair easier to straighten by chemically “relaxing” my natural curls. It didn’t matter to me if I was doing harmful things to my hair. I just wanted to look like someone else. But, that wasn’t who God created me to be. 

Since becoming a Revelation Wellness Instructor, I have found new freedom in Christ. I have a true tangible relationship with God and slowly but surely have returned to my Original Design. I only allow myself to be DEFINED by Him. I am accepted by the ONE who matters and so are you! I was made to walk in this world exactly the way God made me and SO WERE YOU! BE YOURSELF. Be who God created YOU to be, not what society tells you to be. You don’t have to live up to some image of who people “think” you are or should be.

There are many things that define areas of who we are: our past and what we’ve been through, our family history, our successes, our failures, and our relationships. All of these things contribute to who we are, but they do not have the power to define us.

Only Jesus and our heavenly Father have the power to define you. The Creator defines the created. When we know HIS definition of us and who He created us to be, the opinions and the labels of the world no longer matter. You are a child of God (John 1:12; 1 John 3:1). He designed you on purpose with a purpose. (1Peter 2:9)

Show up in the world, uniquely you. Authentic. The world needs to see us. Do it for yourself. Do it for generations to come. I am a BLACK woman and my story matters. I MATTER. Rise up, because YOU matter!

Sit with God and ask Him:

Who do you say that I am? Is there anyone or anything, other than you, that I’ve allowed to define me? Is there anything I need to let go of so that I may return to who you created me to be?

Demetria Yanez is a wife, mother, and Revelation Wellness Instructor (Platoon 20). She is a National Academy of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer and Fitness Nutrition Specialist. Demetria and her husband, Adam, have three daughters, Tamaira (21), Kya (19), and Lauryn (18). She delights in seeing others thrive, strength training with her husband and daughters, and hanging out with her only sibling and his family. Find her on Facebook and Instagram!

Thank you for reading the Revelation Wellness Blog! We are proud to share the stories of our Revelation Wellness Instructors on the blog! They teach us how to love God, ourselves, and others with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength.

Workout with us in this #wednesdayworkout! For more workouts like this visit RevWell TV!

Jenn’s Drumsticks & Strength – “Worship”

This workout will flip-flop you back and forth between cardio and resistance training. Sure to keep your body guessing. Muscle confusion? No big deal. God is never confused about us. Get comfortable being uncomfortable! (ALL LEVELS) (John 4:23-24; DRUMSTICKS, HAND WEIGHTS & YOGA MAT)