Blog #1,845

“It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone” (Ephesians 1:11-12, The Message).

I think I’ve mentioned this before, but bear with me. Sometimes, you can read a passage out of a familiar translation so many times that you stop seeing it. You stop really taking in the meaning of the words and merely recite words.

It’s good to take a different (unusual, quirky, eccentric) translation like The Message to bring a freshness to what the Apostle Paul is saying. Like I’ve said before, The Message doesn’t always get it right, but sometimes it really does. Like here.

What is my identity? Is it my paycheck? Is it my occupation? Is it my bank account? Is it the initials after my last name (or perhaps the initials in front of it)? Is it how many responses my social media posts get? Is it how many views my blogs get?

No. No. No. No. No. No. No.

My identity is in Jesus. Who I am is solely based on Whose I am. My purpose is based on Whose I am.

I’m part of something much bigger than me and my little problems. I’m part of what God has been doing since before time began up until after it ends. God is about redeeming His creation and I get to be a part of it.

Oh, and I get to be a part of the “creation getting redeemed” part. I get redeemed. I have supreme value, not because of how talented or witty or handsome or charming I am, but because Jesus thought I was worth dying for. That and that alone determines my worth, my identity, and my purpose.

That’s who I am and what I’m here for.

A Reminder of Whose You are

“Yahweh your God is there with you, the warrior-Saviour. He will rejoice over you with happy song, he will renew you by his love, he will dance with shouts of joy for you” (Zephaniah 3:17)

That’s my favorite Bible verse. If I to choose one life verse, this one would be #1 with a bullet. Why?

It’s a reminder that what matters isn’t what you’ve done or even who you are but whose you are.

You are not your past or your failures or your bad choices.

You are not even your past glories and successes and your trophy case from yesterwhen.

You are not what you do for a living or your paycheck stubs or your net worth.

You are not the names people call you or even the names you call yourself when you think no one else is listening.

You are the beloved.

You are the one that Yahweh rejoices over, the one He sings over in the night, the one He dances with joy over, the one in whom He is well pleased.

That’s you.

That’s all that matters.

 

Cold Rainy Monday Nights

I don’t mind the rain. I don’t even mind cold and rainy nights. As long as I’m looking at the rain through a well-insulated window from inside.

Actually, I don’t even mind driving in the rain as long as it’s not dark outside. But that’s what I found myself doing tonight when I took my paycheck to my bank’s ATM on a dark, rainy Monday night. At least it was a short drive.

There’s something very peaceful about listening to rain hitting the windows and the roof. Especially if you have one of those antiquated tin roofs. It’s one of my favorite calming sounds.

It helps me to be still and be quiet. It helps calm my anxious thoughts (if I have any) and not be so prone to thinking ahead to the next day or the next week. I think I even pray better when I hear the rain outside.

I know I need to make time for those moments of doing nothing but being intentionally still and quiet and ready to hear God’s voice. It doesn’t have to be all day or even for an hour. It can be fifteen minutes where I don’t have any televisions or radios or iPhones to distract me from what God might be wanting to tell me.

Maybe we can encourage each other to cultivate those quiet moments during the day. I think it would make a huge difference toward getting my mind back toward spiritual things and my eyes refocused on Jesus.

So those are my thoughts on this wet cold Monday evening.