This serving Jesus thing… well it can get quite UNCOMFORTABLE.
Honestly it can.
IT IS.
There is no hidden agenda with Jesus. He puts it all out there from the beginning. .. “You must be willing to give up all to follow me. “
This is an exclusive relationship, no room for my idols.
NO
ROOM
FOR
ME.
He is totally not interested in this copilot business
He asks that I relinquish control and give Him the wheel and get in the back…way back
I must surrender my will and accept His
I must die to myself so that I can live in Him
I must embrace suffering and make of my life a daily offering
But even with all that I have to lose
I rejoice in all that I have gained
Because serving Jesus well it can get quite ADDICTIVE
Honestly it can.
IT IS
He takes my yes
And does more with me than I could have imagined
He hears me when I pray
He sees my tears
And always reminds me that He is on my side
So there is NO NEED TO FEAR
I am constantly receiving confirmation of His love
He has provided beauty for my ashes
Redeemed my past and gave me
A life that will last
FOREVER
I have been praying and asking the Lord to give me a heart to evangelize at a greater level. I want a heart that is not always looking inward but one that is looking outward for those that need Jesus. It is so EASY to get stuck on Anika; my fears of rejection and what others think of me. As I pray and study His word I see that effective evangelism requires death to oneself. So I leave you with this question, “Are you dead enough?”
ARE YOU DEAD ENOUGH?
Many times as Christians we are afraid of speaking and living the whole truth.
Why?
We are afraid of the response.
We are afraid of how others will become offended because the words we speak
And the way we live highlights their sins
Then they lash out
And our feelings get hurt
We take it personal and we shrink back
Why?
Because we are not dead enough
Yeah cause see it is no longer I that live but Christ that lives in me
But maybe
Maybe my death is not a reality
And I have to be honest and say
I am not dead enough
Not dead enough to myself
Not dead enough to recognize that I have been given a mandate to Go
A mandate that takes the focus off of me and puts it all on Jesus
A mandate that asks me to let my light shine,
A light that highlights the darkness of sin
The very light that should be a reflection of Him
His attitude
His courage
His love
His words
And when I am dead enough
I recognize that it is not my words that I am speaking
Consequently I know that they are not rejecting me
But they are rejecting the ONLY one that can set them free
So when I am dead enough, I shake off the rejection
And say, ok on to the next one.
I got my instructions. They were clear.
I am not going to keep on asking for confirmation
I got enough
Cause see
That asking for confirmation thing
Well that was me trying to delay what I know you told me to do
That was me allowing my fears to be bigger than my faith.
But today I am looking fear square in the eye
And telling it
NO. It’s more like COMMANDING it
To GO
To loose it’s hold.
Because God has big things He wants to do in and through me
I believe it
I receive it
I declare it
So then I go to PRAISING like I have lost my mind
But really I have
I am letting go of thinking too much
Thinking my way out of what you have promised
Thinking I am less than, forgetting that I was called before I was born
Thinking about what others think of me; paralyzing me
Thinking it’s not perfect enough so why even try
In my crazy loud I don’t even know what to do with myself PRAISE
I magnify you
I declare your goodness
I rehearse what you have done for me
In my praise I laugh
Laugh because you have given me beauty for ashes
Laugh because you have redeemed my life from destruction
Laugh because you chose me
YOU
CHOSE
ME
I laugh at the enemy
Because He tried, REALLY HARD
BUT
HE
DID
NOT
WIN
So yeah
You gave me instructions
They were clear
And I say yes
Yes I believe it
Yes I will do it
The enemy is shrewd and is always looking for ways to devour our children. His goal is to have them live contrary to their God given purpose and to ultimately destroy them. We must not be passive. As parents we have been given the great task of speaking life over our children, reminding them that they were called before they were born. It is imperative that we let our children know God has a purpose for their life and encourage them to live accordingly. Below I created a quick worksheet highlighting the call of Samson in Judges Chapter 13. Take some time to read the passage and answer the reflection questions below.
Reflection Questions for Judges Chapter 13
God gave specific guidelines for Samson before He was even born. Why did God give these specific guidelines? In other words what was Samson’s purpose?
Even though Samson’s mother was not called to be the deliverer for Israel, she also had to be careful about what she consumed as she carried Samson. Are you aware that what you consume (spiritually) can affect the call of God on your child?
What are some things (spiritually speaking) that you need to remove from your diet, to help foster the call of God on your child’s life?
Sometimes we may need more clarity on the call of God on our child’s life, it is ok to ask. What does Samson’s father do in Judges 13: 8? What does He ask for?
What does James 1:5 tell us to do?
Has the Lord given you any insights concerning the call on your child’s life? Please list them below.
Have you been asking God for wisdom on how to help develop the call/purpose for your child’s life? What are some practical things you can do to help develop that call?
Yesterday I wrote about having an identity crisis. However as I connect more with God I am beyond delighted to learn that not only is my identity in Him; but I am also learning that I was called before I was born. Yes that is right, there was a call on my life before I was even born! I was created for a specific purpose. The same is true for you. Below is a quick worksheet I created to remind you of this truth. Take some time to fill this out and reflect on the assigned scriptures. Are you living in the reality that you were called before you were born? Are you pursuing the purpose God has for your life?
Jeremiah 1:5(NLT)
5 “I __________ you before I ________ you in your _________ ________.Before you were ________ I set you ________and _________ you as my prophet to the nations.”
I also love how the amplified bible states it.
Jeremiah 1:5Amplified Bible
5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you [and approved of you as My chosen instrument],And before you were born I consecrated you [to Myself as My own];I have appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
On the lines below, please write this verse in your own words? What stands out the most to you about this verse?
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
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Have you really stopped to consider this verse; meditating on what this means for your life?
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Do you live your life knowing that God had a plan for you before you were even born? Do you believe this?
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Are you in constant communication with the one who created you? Do you seek Him for how to live out the call on your life, or do you follow your own agenda or what others think you should be? Answer honestly and give examples.
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What have been some of the biggest hindrances (feeling inadequate, people’s negative opinions, doubt, ungodly relationships, lack of pursuit, finances, etc.?) to you pursuing the call of God on your life? Have you prayed about these hindrances or have you lived in defeat?
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What are some practical things you can start to do to fulfill the call of God on your life? For example I know that I was called to encourage others through my writing so I try to be faithful to posting on my blog.
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My two year old was lovingly nicknamed Faithy by her four year old brother. When asked her name, her response used to be FAITHY because that is what we called her. We had to teach her that her real name is Faith. This may sound silly but I think it drives home a bigger point. How many of us are going around answering to a name and taking on an identity and a purpose that is not ours?
Many in the body of Christ are experiencing an identity crisis. We don’t know who we really are for many reasons.
Some of us have allowed our past mistakes to define us
We are not living in the reality that because we are in Christ we are new creatures
The old has passed away
EMBRACE THE NEW BLOOD BOUGHT YOU
And sometimes we are not as connected as we would like to think to the one who created us; the one who gave us our identity and our purpose.
We refuse to turn off the noise so we are unable to hear when He tells us who we really are.
We struggle with being comfortable in our own skin and we allow everyone and everything EXCEPT the creator to define us and dictate the plans for our lives.
Some of us have been called a different name for so long that we forget our real names which are
LOVED (Jeremiah 31:3)
ACCEPTED (Acts 10:34-35)
ROYALTY (1 Peter 2:9)
CHOSEN (1 Peter 2:9)
REDEEMED (Psalm 103:4, Titus 2:14)
Just to name a few.
But now is the time
THE TIME TO RISE UP AND AGGRESSIVELY CLAIM OUR GOD GIVEN IDENDITY!