Defined by Him

When thinking about who I used to be and who I am today, I find myself in constant awe of what the Lord has done in my life, teaching me about who the world says I am and then who HE says I am. One feeling that Satan uses very easily is shame which is very common for NON believers, NEW believers and even STRONG believers. How crazy is it that even in different areas of our walk with Jesus, the same tactics are still being used to destroy us. Shame is used to intertwine us with our previous mistakes, allowing us to believe that God does not love us and that God is upset with us, therefore we can no longer be in communion with him. Shame takes place in the PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE. In my personal walk with the Lord, shame has appeared in these three areas like so: 

PAST: “I should have never done that, I will never be forgiven, that decision shapes me.” 

PRESENT: “God, why am I feeling this temptation and doubt, does this mean I am not a good enough believer? Are you mad at me? Do I not love you?” 

FUTURE: “I am so scared that I will feel tempted or doubt again and that makes me feel like I am not good enough or do not love God enough.”  

Sometimes shame still looks like that in my life, but the more I get to know Jesus and the more I dive into scripture I am reminded of the truth of not only who I am and how my past does not define me, but I am reminded of who God is and how he reacts to us even in our times of the  strongest temptation and sin.  

VERSE ONE: 

 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the  new has come!”  

VERSE TWO: 

Psalm 91:2-4 “God you are my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”  

VERSE THREE: 

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will  find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” 

I love these verses because they remind us who we are when we seek Jesus and His sacrifice on the cross, which reminds us that he died on the cross so that we might be washed clean and appear white as snow, COMPLETELY, ENTIRELY forgiven of all of our transgressions. NOT ONLY are we forgiven when we are baptized or accept Jesus into our heart, but He is QUICK to  forgive EACH AND EVERY time we ask him for forgiveness. 

These verses remind us of God's character and that he is not judgmental and is not mad at us when we sin, doubt or feel shamed. Rather, he is QUICK to LISTEN abounding in love. ULTIMATELY GOD IS LOVE. He is entirely incapable of not loving us. WHAT A THOUGHT THAT WE SEARCH THE WORLD FOR TRUE LOVE AND WE DESIRE TO FALL IN LOVE, BUT THE ONLY THING WE ARE  GIVEN WHEN WE ARE BORN IS TRUE LOVE FROM OUR GOD. 

What a gift!!!!! Although scripture tell us exactly who GOD is and that we are entirely loved and forgiven, we must not forget that we live in a time where people are searching for their identity in places and things that are deceiving and have two results: to destroy and lead them into further  temptation OR to leave them feeling lost, inadequate or empty, which the Lord also does not desire for us and sees us as the COMPLETE OPPOSITE of his will. In this world, it is seen every second that we live in a pursuit of self and when we are not following the Lord, we find ourselves giving into every desire of our flesh just because we feel like it. It is so frightening how the enemy uses our flesh to trick us and trap us into everything that is bad and harmful for us. 

Take a look at how easy it is for us to give into temptation and our emotions when we are not following God and when we are not firmly reminded of his word NOW imagine how hard it is to view ourselves in a loving manner when we are not rooted in his word and how he views us, but ALSO with the constant stream of distractions this world has to offer. The main ones today are social media, body image, money, fame, status, etc. EVEN as believers we may find ourselves getting lost in these distractions, which makes me feel so much empathy for people who are not believers and compare themselves to everyone and everything around them not feeling good enough or believing the lie that a “perfect” body, face, job, status or relationship will satisfy them. 

Another verse the Lord always reminds me of when I find myself in these moments of  comparison or distraction is Proverbs 14:30 “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” I love this verse because it not only reminds us of how comparison and insecurity affects us emotionally and mentally, but it affects us and wearies our bones, criticizing and hurting the temple that God declares is our bodies.  

Pray with me: Lord, may you continue to remind us in your word that the enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy and may you lovingly convict us that when we do not consistently run to our secret place every second of every day, we may be gripped and suffocated by the enemy. I am thankful father that you provide yourself as a place of rest and refuge in a world that has so many shiny things that  the devil uses to convince us are the truth and the way when in reality it is your son Jesus Christ. “I am the way the truth and the life” 

Some questions to ask yourself in response: 

What words do you use to define yourself? 

What things and places have you found your purpose and identity in? 

How do you find that these things, places and words align with Gods word? 

How do these things make you feel? Purposeful? Forgiven? Encouraged? Loved? Or  Envious, Inadequate, ashamed and hungry for another life or purpose?