Tag: jesus

Identity

Breaking Through Religion To Get To The Relationship: Discovering your true identity in Christ.

Jaime

Before getting into the identity piece, let’s start with defining religion and relationship, specifically as they relate to Christianity.

What is Religion? 

A set of beliefs, practices, and rituals relating to faith that includes works, emphasizing our efforts to gain God’s acceptance.

What is a Relationship?

It is an intimate and secure bond between us and God (not to be mistaken as a relationship of equals). We are accepted by grace through faith because of what HE did through Jesus.

How do these two things affect our identity?

Identity in Religion

Who you are and how God sees you is based upon YOUR works. You are favored when doing what you are “supposed” to do but guilty and unloved when you fail. This puts all responsibility on you, resulting in an unstable and insecure identity that changes depending on your efforts.

Identity in Relationship

Who you are and how God sees you is based on HIS doing. God is who He says He is, which means we are who He says we are. As our Creator, God is the only one with authority to define us, and since there is nothing we can do to earn his acceptance, we remain stable and secure in the works that have already been done through Jesus. Therefore, our identity never changes.

What do you struggle with when it comes to the issue of identity?

Dependence on God, Identity, Support

Why Do We Suffer Alone?

Jaime

After church on Sunday, I stayed for prayer. I was struggling. After praying with a sister in Christ, we started chatting. She, too, suffers like I do. We discussed how easy it is to talk about the minor, everyday transgressions but not the deep, dark stuff. The stuff that keeps us enslaved, preventing us from living in the freedom Jesus provided. 

So, why IS it so hard to talk about these things?

Fear

Fear of judgment

Fear of embarrassment

Fear of not being accepted

If anyone ever knew_____ then_____ (fill in the blanks).

We are called to confess our sins and pray for each other that we may be healed (James 5:16), yet we still fear what others will think about us. Your feelings are legit. We are human and DO have opinions and feelings about situations and behaviors we are unfamiliar with. And, we need to put our fleshly biases aside and be open to hearing people’s stories, walking alongside them, even if/when we don’t understand.

Sins kept in the darkness result in decay, isolation, shame, and guilt. All things Jesus died for. When we expose them to the light, they begin to lose their power (Romans 6:18).

Where do we start?

God

-Repent and thank HIM for the forgiveness already given through Jesus’ sacrifice.

-Ask God to give you the courage to expose your “stuff” to the light. Stop relying on yourself and ask for help. 

-Pray for trustworthy, faith-filled, walking-the-walk-type individuals to come into your life (an individual/mentor or group).

-Join a small group. If you can’t find one, start one.

-Don’t give in when the enemy tries to convince you to keep it a secret (whatever IT is) because he will. He’s a liar and doesn’t want you moving closer to God.

-Don’t allow your feelings to lead the way. Obedience to God’s word will not lead you astray (be doers of the word and not just hearers- James 1:22).

You’d be surprised how many others relate and share in your suffering. It only takes one person’s vulnerability to create an environment of safety and connection.

What is one thing you can do today to move towards the light?

Anxiety Series

Prepare For Battle – Day 2

Jaime

I grew up by the world’s standards, often hearing;

If you want something, go and get it. If there’s a problem, you fix it. All responsibility was placed on the individual. 

There were a few problems with this.

  1. My ways of fixing things weren’t always good for me.
  2. Knowing that my entire life depended on me was way too much pressure.

Once I became a believer, my worldview shifted. I no longer felt the need to control everything. I managed what I could and chose to trust God with the rest, but this didn’t happen right away.

Like any other relationship, it took me a while to build trust. Through reading God’s Word, I learned a lot about His character and who He was, discovering that He was in fact Trustworthy.

He keeps His promises. We see this by his finished work on the cross.

Thus began a process of developing my worldview and overall foundation. This has affected the way I view the world and how I function in it. It’s all helped me to deal with my anxiety from a more biblical perspective.

What we believe about the world influences everything in our lives, including how we deal with anxiety.

 

What’s your worldview?

Anxiety Series

Prepare For Battle – Day 1

Jaime

I’ve struggled with anxiety to varying degrees throughout my life. Once I became a Christian and began reading God’s Word, I realized how many passages addressed the issue of anxiety, telling me not to be anxious.

I understood that I wasn’t supposed to be anxious, but I still was, and where was the how-to section?

Some of us might have confided in our church family only to have been told;

  • You’re not trusting God
  • “Be anxious for nothing” or quoting other scriptures
  • You don’t need medication. God can heal you.
  • Pray harder

I honestly thought that something was wrong with me. I must be a “bad Christian.”

Over time I realized that nothing was wrong with me. I was human. God created us with a fight or flight response which tells me that anxiety is part of the human experience.

I want to draw your attention to Luke 22: 42-44. We see Jesus praying in the garden of Gethsemane. He knows what’s about to go down. This is his prayer;

“Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me, yet not my will, but yours be done. An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.”

Luke 22:42-44 NIV

Jesus is anxious. He is experiencing human emotions. In the midst of this, we witness his obedience and also get a glimpse of the spiritual tools that are available to help him cope. Those same tools are available to us.

We may never be free from anxiety (not in this lifetime, anyway), but partnering with God gives us the power to battle anxiety.

I think that’s worth repeating,

Partnering with God gives us the power to battle anxiety.

In what ways have you struggled with anxiety?

Identity

Not Ashamed

Jaime

Hi, my name is Jaime and I love Jesus.

There have been times I’ve wanted to introduce myself this way, just to get it out of the way. My anxiety and people-pleasing tendencies come up when I talk about my faith with unbelievers.

I want people to like me for who I am, regardless of my beliefs. I don’t want to be lumped into a category of people that have misrepresented his name. Besides that, once you mention the name of Jesus an automatic line is drawn in the sand.

I’m placing the fear of opinions above my faith

This is not in alignment with who I claim to be.

No one likes to be judged. We all want to be seen and accepted for who we are as people, not by our choices or preferences. But the truth is we’ve all judged and been judged in one way or another.

Then there’s Jesus. The one who sees all my faults and mistakes. He knows my history of disdain towards him, yet he dies for me. I spit on him, brutally attack him and mock him, yet he dies for me.

How can I be ashamed of the one who gave his life for me, for the one who solidified my own personal “I am.”

I am making a decision;

I will not be ashamed

I can’t talk the talk and not walk it. I need to walk it. I WANT to.

I need to make sure that I’m keeping it real, which for me means not shying away from speaking about the one who saved me from myself. With that being said, I’m not trying to convert you (well maybe a little) when I talk about him. He is just so much a part of my life, I can’t NOT talk about him. It wouldn’t be authentic.

Now that I have made this choice, it seems appropriate to give him a proper shout out:

Give me a J….

Give me an E…

Give me an S…

Give me a U…

Give me an S…

What’s that spell?

JESUS!!! hoots and haws in the background.

What fears stand in the way of your truth?