Part 5: Relationship and Identity

Part 5: Relationship and Identity

"Oh I think it's love at first sight..."

"My heart is racing..."

"I love the way he makes me feel..."

These are actually love out of sensuality - lust of the eyes and lust of the flesh. It boils down to self-centeredness. It's worldly love that does not represent heaven.

We don't enter a relationship to be loved. Neither do we enter one to feel complete. If we do so, we will end up in disappointment and heartache. Because love is never meant to be demanded from anyone. The definition of love is to give. John 3:16

The wedding vow has nothing in the list that talks about being loved. On the contrary, it says, "to love..."

You enter into a relationship TO love. Because you are not supposed to draw love from your partner. You are to draw from the perfect Love (Jesus). 1 John 4:19.

You enter into a relationship not to become or feel complete. No one can make you more complete than you already are in Christ. Col 2:10. 

To find someone else in a relationship so that you can be complete is to deny your true identity and walk contrary to it. Many women misplace their identity in the men they love and end up in despair and brokenness.

If we seek a relationship to be loved, we are not walking in the fulfillment of our true identity. #identity

Part 4: Food And Identity

Part 4: Food And Identity

Food researches have shown to be contradicting one another in recent years. One research can prove that organic food is healthy. Another can prove that it is no different from non-organic. The point is, if we want to live by the researches, we may want to consider fasting from all food eventually.

Furthermore, to live in fear of how this food may impact our bodies results in an opened door for the enemy to attack. Any time we walk in fear, we give the enemy an opportunity.

Mark 7:15 - There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.

The context here was talking about the traditions that the Jews were holding onto firmly. But what if we apply the principle of the text with the following verses?

Mark 16:18 - ...and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them;

Luke 10:19 - Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

1 Timothy 4:4-5 - For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

1 John 5:4 - For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

Fallen food is a result of the Fall. But because of the Cross, we have been redeemed to the pre-Fall position. We are in this world but NOT of this world. Just as we need not be subjected to sicknesses and diseases as sons and daughters of God, we need not be subjected to the effects of the fallen food.

Knowing our true identity protects us from the food that we eat. If we are always concerned with the food we eat, we have placed our identity in the wrong area. #identity

Part 3: Position Or Identity

A senior pastor (not Methodist) once told me this, "If you leave this church ministry, you will no longer have the position of a youth pastor."

I replied, "It doesn't matter." He was pretty surprised at my reply. That's because he had tied his identity to his position.

Another person told me, "If you want to influence people, you need a higher position." It's the same - identity tied to position.

Strip anyone off his job title/ministry position and you will find out where he places his identity in.

If we need a position in order to influence, lead and/or serve in ministry, we fail to recognise who we really are in Christ. Joseph & Daniel showed us it is possible in the Old Covenant. Christ showed us it is possible in the New. 

Christ IN us is the Hope of glory. Christ IN us is more than enough to influence, lead and serve anywhere.

Your job title/ministry position does not determine your identity. On the contrary, your identity is your true position. You are sons & daughters of the most high God. That is the highest and the most privileged position. "We are seated with Christ in the heavenly places..."

If we walk in that revelation of our identity, there is no one we can't influence and lead, regardless of our position/title. #identity

Part 2: Finances or Identity

One of the easiest ways to discover where our identity lies in is in finances. Strip a person from drawing a salary and you will find where his identity is placed in, especially for men.

Somehow, we tie our identity to our bank account balance. We make decisions based on that. I have seen people going back to where they were, because of the fear of lack of finances, even though God has already called them out. Some would mask insecurity behind responsibility. "We have to be responsible, you know?" "I can't just leave without making a certain plan to ensure that finances are coming in." These are usually fears masquerading as human wisdom.

What if God is waiting for us to step out before He provides? Psalm 23:6 says "Surely goodness and mercy will FOLLOW me all the days of my life..." It doesn't say, "Goodness and mercy will go ahead of you." In other words, providence (His goodness) will most likely not be ahead of you. Providence FOLLOWS you. Only when you step out, providence comes in. It's the same principle as laying hand on the sick. The sick doesn't get healed before you lay hand. They get healed after you laid hand. Signs and wonders FOLLOW you.

The fear of lack is very real. But it also reveals who we trust in. Many Christians know that God is our Provider. We know it full well in our head. We can close both eyes and say the compound name Jehovah Jireh. But you will know if you really know Him as the Provider in your heart when you don't draw a salary and your bank account is almost reaching a zero.

This is why there are many Christian property agents living without integrity. Because they have tied their identity to finances. I believe they genuinely struggled through a period before they finally compromised. When you don't experience God coming true for you for a period of time, you will want to take over His job of providence. This is why many succumbed to giving fake offers, dummy advertisements, telling white lies, undercutting, etc.

When I came out from full-time church ministry, I struggled for the first two-three months. I realised it had been pretty comfortable for me to be drawing a regular salary in church. When I struggled without any income, I realised that I only knew God as my Provider in the head all these years. I preached many times on Him as the Provider. But I wasn't living in the revelation of Him as my Provider. It was due to false identity built in me because of the family that I was raised in.

In that period of three months, God spoke to me clearly to soak in His love everyday. I simply spent time soaking in His presence and receiving His love daily. In that season, I remember attending a seminar having the speaker sharing the exact same thing I heard from God in my morning devotion. Soak and rest in His love. There would be another conference theme which said "Return to the Father's Love". Though I didn't go for it, I knew God was speaking consistently to me. He was revealing Himself as my Father who provides. He wanted me to know in my heart, not in my head.

When my identity was secure in Him, He began to provide in amazing way. You can say that finances literally dropped from heaven. Literally. 

I don't write a newsletter asking for finances like some organisations. I personally don't believe in that. I just can't ask for money and testify to others that God provides amazingly. It's like going around telling everyone that I need a house, and when someone buys it for me, I say, "Wow God provides for me!" Well, I can't get past that. Just my conviction.

Psalm 23:5 says "...You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows."

In the period of soaking in His love, I meditated on this verse that I had read so many times before. I wondered how the two parts are connected. He began to speak to me, "Your cup of blessings overflows when you know My love."

God anoints us as His sons and daughters. He doesn't anoint you if you are not His son. As His sons and daughters, we are also His beloved. When we know how much He loves us, we have boldness and confidence to receive from Him. Faith always works through love. His love is the foundation where faith rests upon. So the more we know His love for us, the more we have confidence in Him as our Provider. That releases the manifestation of the blessings.

If we know that we are seated with Christ and blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, our identity will not be affected by our bank account balance. Because our identity is in Christ. As He is, so are we in this world.

Your position determines your providence. 

Knowing that we are His beloved sons and daughters in the heart (not in the head) empowers us to receive His providence.

P.S: The book of Ephesians is a powerful epistle to meditate on. #identity

Identity

My wife told me that someone took what she shared and turned it into his own sharing in front of others, so that he can receive credit from them, as though it's his own idea and wisdom. I said, "Let him be. He is insecure. You are the original. This type of people is common everywhere because of insecurity."

Insecure people always want to appear original. If only they knew how original they were created to be, they won't be insecure. Identity is probably one of the most, if not, the most neglected element in the society as well as in the churches.

Without identity, one will never understand how complete she/he already is. It is my zeal and passion to focus on identity and live in it. Jesus!

In the next few posts, we will look at how identity is everything in life. #identity

Hear Jesus' Voice

We saw bus 136 at the traffic junction. My son went, "Oh bus 136! We need to quickly run." As the traffic light was still red, I told him that we wouldn't be in time to run to the bus stop, so we would need to wait for the next bus. He said, "We need to wait very long." Usually, the intervals can be pretty long.

I responded, "You can pray and Jesus will answer you. It can be very fast." He prayed.

When we reached the bus stop (about 1 minute away), he exclaimed, "Oh 136 is so fast. It's here!" I turned around to look. It's 136. That was a pleasant surprise! We immediately thanked Jesus.

A thought then came to me on the bus. It's time for J to learn how to hear God's voice.

In the late evening, I told him, "J, it is very easy to hear Jesus' voice. He wants to speak to you. Papa will teach you."

He seemed excited.

We took a piece of paper and a colour pencil. I said, "Close your eyes. Now let's ask Jesus to speak. Ask Him about you."

He saw Thomas the engine. Now he had been talking about Tayo bus earlier, so this was spot on about who he is.

Thomas is a cheeky train. He's sociable and full of passion. As J was drawing, I told him what Jesus meant when He showed him Thomas.

We proceeded to ask Jesus about Mama. He saw Lego toy. Well, that speaks about his Mama indeed, in terms of her personality.

Then he asked Jesus about me. He saw a car. I understood the interpretation.

Last but not least, he asked Jesus about his friend, Josiah. He saw jigsaw puzzle. Not sure what it meant. Lol.

At the end of the session, I asked, "Is it easy to hear from Jesus?" He replied, "Yes!"

We can cultivate our child to commune with Him. No age is too small to hear from God. In fact, the earlier we can show him that it's easy, the more it becomes a strong foundation in his life. #nojuniorHolySpirit #fathering101