Who I Am In Christ Devotionals

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.  1 Corinthians 15:10 (CSB) Paul says, "I am what I am." That’s a statement of acceptance. It’s an important reminder for me too. Because I can resent what I am and who I am. I can resent my own biography, the stuff that has happened in my life. I can certainly blame people and events for my struggles.  I am what I am. But rather than be resentful of who I am, I should be grateful. And I don’t use that word “should” lightly. I don’t like it. It’s a pushy little word isn’t it! And I think it’s the right word here. See, I should be grateful for who I am. I recently visited my chiropractor. He has worked on a number my family members. And he started to list the blessings I have. And it was humbling. God was using him. And I am grateful. Here's what happened: in that doctors office, I spoke

And God is able to make every grace overflow to you, so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8 CSB Some fathers ignore their children. At best, this kind of man rushes out to work and,  when he get home,  takes care of his own needs and comfort. Sometimes, he looks up to pat the kids on the head. Does God treat me like that, or does He walk with me, take care of me, and make my path straight? Okay, that's an easy answer. He loves. He is love. He is a good father.  That love involves testing too. These tests make me. And in this testing, sometimes, God seems like He ignores me.  He does not ever ignore me.  He is much more like that gymnastics coach who has his hand underneath my back the first time I try to do a backbend on a balance beam. I might not even be aware his hand is there. Yet, when I falter, when I slip, He is right there. He is fully able and engaged.  And He makes grace OVERflow to me. Overflow

    But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. More than that, I also consider everything to be a loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. Because of him I have suffered the loss of all things and consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ. Philippians 3:7-8 Goodies of the World I am a follower of Christ. That’s who I am. Jesus sent apostles after He lived who were specially empowered by the Holy Spirit to carry His message and to get the New Testament church up and going.  Sometimes, these apostles, like Paul, tell us to do like him. In one case He tells us to follow him as he follows Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). And here in the book of Philippians I think he is telling me (2000 years after he wrote it) to follow him as he follows Christ.  His message is this: consider the goodies of the world lost, but you will gain Christ.  And this idea needs to nourish my attitude. He says, “Everything that was a gain,

  Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have also obtained access through him by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we boast in the hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. This hope will not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Romans 5:1-5 Grace I read that and tried to cut out a verse or two for this devotional; I just couldn't do it. I am justified. Right with God. I have peace with God. I could stop right there. What more is needed? Try and put a value on having peace with God. I can't. Oh, I want to know it dearly. And the passage continues. I have access into this grace. I. Regular old me has access. I have it now. Today. I boast. Humble pride. I boast in

  Lord , do not rebuke me in your anger; do not discipline me in your wrath. Be gracious to me, Lord , for I am weak; heal me, Lord , for my bones are shaking; my whole being is shaken with terror. And you, Lord — how long? Psalm 6:1-3 Struggles That Overwhelm Me I have trials as a believer. Who doesn't? A friend recently told me that I sounded conflicted and worried. He was right! On any given day, I can be. I look to the Lord every day to level my path. On some days I am so worn down that my struggle with my own emotions work me over. Faith is an issue for me. Not so much in the big picture; it's the day to day struggles that overwhelm me. I can feel very close to God and far from Him on the same day. I can know He has saved me yet have trouble trusting Him in the moment. When life happens, I can get upset, resentful, even angry with God. Yes, I am weak. But I am growing! God is teaching me every day. I Get to Ask Him to Be Gracious to Me. But, I really do have bad days. I ve

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight. Ephesians 1:7-8 Drops My Jaw! As a child, I walked 1.5 miles to school. And I would take any opportunity to cut through a neighbor's yard. One day, a kind old guy came out and politely asked me to walk around, not through. I sheepishly agreed. I was trespassing; he forgave me. And that's nothing compared to what Jesus did for me; Jesus redeemed me from the power of Hell. See, I was owned by Satan from the day Adam sold out himself and the human race. Jesus paid my debt with His life. Plus, I'm redeemed according to His riches. What! That means there is wealth upon wealth of riches to go around for all who will answer the call and believe. That's His grace. The next part is the piece that really drops my jaw... He lavished that grace upon me. Lavished. Nothing Boring About Redemption I need that remind

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin. Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need. Hebrews 4:15-16 Inner Fight I am a blessed believer, redeemed by the blood of the lamb. Dearly loved. And I am weak. It seems like every day there is some kind of inner fight. Anger, grief, jealousy. And there's the pride, every single day. It's almost like I need to do a regular pride check. Like the dash light that tells me that my tire is low, I need a humility check. And Jesus, the King of kings, sympathizes with my weakness. This is particularly hard for me to internalize. I can have a wrong-headed message in my head that says, “You’re on your own here.” Or, “You need to go to the spiritual gym and workout to make yourself worthy enough to come to God; then, He’ll pay attention to you.” Lies.

Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love, and teach me your statutes. I am your servant; give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies! Psalm 119:124‭-‬125 According to His Steadfast Love I am a child of the one true God. I am His servant. The songwriter of this Psalm just up and says, "Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love." Oh, I want to have the faith and courage to talk to God like that. I mean, the psalmist almost sounds demanding! Of course, he is not. He simply knows God so well that He can ask and He will receive. This becomes a model for me when I pray. I so want God to deal with me according to His steadfast love. What a beautiful idea! Yes God, deal with me like that. Zooms By Like a Speeding Corvette And teach me your statutes, your word, and what you want me to do. Teach me that. Wait. I can ask God to teach me things! And He listens? Yes. The bible is a treasure of truth that I can read and it zooms right by me like a s

  But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Ephesians 4:7 Every Believer As a believer in Jesus, how much grace do I get? And what about everyone else? It says "each one." That's every believer. Each. That means me. I get grace. I don't deserve it. That's part of what grace is: it's an undeserved blessing. And He uses it to turn me, like a potter turns a lump of clay, into His workmanship. And my friends who are believers get it too. We each are getting this grace all at the same time. Plus every other believer on the planet. Of course, He has targeted non-believers with His grace too, they just don't know it yet; He lovingly draws them. He Does Not Get Spread Thin If He's spreading all that grace around, He must be getting spread thin (like me when I take on too much), right? No. He doesn't get spread too thin. This grace gets spread around to each according to the measure of Christ's gift. I'm not go

  Many who became believers confessed their sinful practices. Acts 19:18