weekend highlight

a life changing revelation

dumping out my wallet leaves me staring at evidence of my identity on the floor. license. credit card. debit card. school id. health insurance card. car insurance. fitness club membership. library card. AAA card…my initial thought is, “the only thing that makes them identity is my name..it’s just my name, big whoop.”

these days, people can do a lot with just your name. praise it, defame it, abuse it, steal it…  your name is a big deal.

in the real world, when someone steals your identity, they take it without you knowing it. …intending to strip it of its integrity, value and uniqueness. if they’re successful, it becomes a lifeless “it”. No distinguishing characteristics. Nothing more than a limp form in the perpetrators hands, ready to receive the breath of counterfeit. that breath deceives the rest of the world.. they’ll never know who you were or who you were created by.

ever thought about what identity theft looks like spiritually? Hauntingly similar, with a kicker.

isaiah 43:1 But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you.
O Israel, the one who formed you says,
“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.
I have called you by name; you are mine.

He not only formed you, He ransomed you (The price or payment demanded or paid for such release), and called you by name. your OWN name. “by name“, to me, says ‘your name’ distinguished you from the others..(+personality and stuff that makes you, you- He designed that too.). why would He give you your own name, then make you like someone else? <insert snowflake analogy for cheese point>  psalm 139 says He knit us together in our mother’s womb, with a future and a hope! knitting is a pretty intricately detailed/time consuming process last time i checked. David didn’t say He put us together like papier-mache – all sloppy and random, while saying “whatever happens happens.” there was a ton of thought that went into this! i’m thinkin God wouldn’t have spent so long and planned so far ahead for your life if He didn’t have any expectations for you.

He actually has plans of prosperity for me? yep, that’s what He said. but what becomes of the original path of prosperity He designed for your identity is no longer found in Him, but forefeited to what you do, who you love, or to your past? say hello to spiritual identity theft.

hello spiritual identity theft. when he (the devil) steals your spiritual identity,  he takes it without you knowing it. …intending to strip it of its integrity, value and uniqueness. It becomes a lifeless “it”. No distinguishing characteristics. Nothing more than a limp form in the perpetrators hands, ready to receive the breath of counterfeit. that breath deceives the rest of the world from ever knowing who you were, even Who created you.

sound familiar? welcome to the enemy’s plan of attack. paul tells us to not be ignorant of the devils schemes. it’s what he does. he masks himself things that absorb your time, thoughts, life…

SIT (spiritual identity theft) has a low jack, unlike ‘real world’ identity theft. prayer :) God’s all about us having no other gods before Him… if we ask Him what’s up with our identity – He’ll be more than faithful to point out identity thieves :)

easter09

hardened heart

Some things have taken place in the past weeks leaving a decision at my feet. To let anger/spite/narrowed revenge reign, or allow myself to be broken at the knees and return love. I can tell you which is the easier of the two; the one I initially leaned towards. It’s the one that seems to release every pent up emotion in a liberating fashion- but in that moment of seeming liberation, you’re actually being bound to the situation. You’re bound tightly. To the point where it becomes your thoughts. You’re a slave to not only the situations events, but the underlying and mounting hatred for the affiliated people and places. May just be me, but that doesn’t seem liberating at all. And it’s NOT the norm. We’ve claimed bondage as the norm. “Put it behind you” or “get over it”, don’t exist. I too am guilty of staging a false forgiveness in my heart, by telling myself I’m over it, it’s behind me – but I’m really signing the papers saying I’m cool with being tied to this.

Isn’t that the true cry? Separate this from me! So why am I ok with signing a symbolic .doc that says I’m down with the exact opposite?

Consider Ps. 57…

2I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills his purpose for me. 3He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me, God sends his love and his faithfulness. 4I am in the midst of lions, I lie among ravenous beasts- men whos teeth are spears and arrows, who’s tounges are sharp swords…6They spread a net for my feet- I was bowed down in distress. They dug a pit in my path- but they have fallen into it themselves. 7My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast…8 I will awaken the dawn.

A few things here… David is in obvious distress, being pursue by one out to destroy him. (in his case, Saul). If you’ve read that story, he has multiple chances where he could have exercised the anger/defense he naturally would have. But he saw Saul, his enemy nonetheless, as the Lord’s anointed- and showed life giving grace even as this man avenged not just dethroning his name, but his existence. David was well aware of the threatening beasts and the words sent to slay his name, but yet he still claims God. Even though the distress has him bowed down, he holds to a promise:

Ps 145:14 The LORD sustains all who fall
And raises up all who are bowed down.

Being pressed to the point of almost breaking, has the promise of being raised again. Saweet. I guess to even cling to that promise you’d find yourself in a pretty humble state. Confidence in humility… not trusting in myself to get through this alive, but standing on His Word; He says  I am an overcomer. In Him is how that overcoming is possible.

Mmmm mmmm. The power to overcome. He’s given victory?! Freedom comes with victory – Well, shoot, if He’s given freedom, why in the world would I want to be bound to the past? Trying to get past it in my own strength… what a waste. Makes me want to kick myself for all those times I hung on to what had happened, convincing myself I enjoyed mulling it over – deeping my resentment.. and then for some sickening reason, other peoples demise began to bring joy.

I wasn’t aware that there was another option…

New goal – to try out this freedom He’s given to me. I’m not talking about Salvation – that’s the initial freedom. But I’ve noticed walking with the Lord requires breaking free from the things that this satan dude tries to taze you with. He tries to paralyze you with difficulties, snares, fights, words, your past… to keep you from moving into what God has for YOUR future. Cause there is a plan for GREAT things for you – do you believe there are great things for you? or have you been overcome by the one you have been given the power to overcome? (read that one back again. refer below for clarification) They say knowledge is power… and in this case – it’s power beyond what you can imagine.

1 john 4:4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

Don’t taze me, bro. I’m an overcomer.