Near and Far Faith

As you look now to your future, look boldly. Know that the God of all creation has provided you with all courage, and you will need to draw on it from time to time. Admit weakness and do not hide it. Recognize when you’re concealing your true identity from your Father who already knows you from the inside out. You are part of a masterpiece—a picture of this world that God chose to include you in on purpose. There’s no one more important or less important on this planet to Him… than you. So move freely in your true identity and fight the war of life along side our Warrior King Jesus. He has never been far from you, no matter where you are now. Do not trust your feelings over His revelations. He is ready to reveal himself. He is ready to reveal your true identity. Are you?

Take a walk. Right now. If it’s too late then read your Bible for a while and connect with God, get up early tomorrow, and take a walk just to be with Him. Then come back and keep reading.

Don’t cheat! Go! If it’s raining, grab an umbrella!

There is no success or failure in God’s eyes when it comes to discovering your identity. As we’ve said already, the process  is God’s goal. But beware of the trip wires along the way. Your pride will creep in and grab for others attention over His. Your anger will flare up at crappy food and bad drivers. People you thought loved you will hurt you.

This is a battlefield and sometimes the strategy must change to keep you fresh and alert. Your daily connection time with God doesn't always have to look the same. In fact it should change from time to time so you can see new things through new strategies.

Read Mark 8:22-26 and then Mark 10:46-52

Why did Jesus do it the same both times?

God does not change, but the world that he made does. While it’s foundations remain the same, to rescue an infinite number of different people, God, over time, has changed his strategies and tactics. So then should we. God does not set things in stone for us to follow from here until our death. In fact, we will often come to the same situation twice and the wise thing to do may be different each time.

So as the journey wears on you, feel free to change things up. Don’t use this as a license to become lazy, complacent, or stop growing. God doesn’t change, but he does move. As we follow him, we must move too.

I want to take the Delorean time machine back to Jerusalem on the night Jesus died. I want to see Peter lose his hand/eye coordination and lop off the high priest’s servant’s ear. I want to see him deny knowing God. I want to see Jesus’ last breath. And I want to be there to see what no one else saw—Jesus walking out of the tomb that couldn’t hold him in. Relive the death and resurrection of Jesus. Play the movie in your imagination as you read.

Read john 19:17-37 and then Matthew 28:1-10

If our identity is found in Jesus and he died, shouldn’t we also die? And if he rose from the dead, shouldn’t there be that symbolism in our lives too? There is. Letting go of your stolen identity—the one that Lucifer and his demons fed you from the moment you began—is like a death. While we know it’s good to lose it, there’s extreme pain in letting go of parts of us that we loved, even though they pulled us from God. Don’t puff yourself up and pretend these feelings aren't there. Be honest with yourself and those around you. We all have them.

But the story ends later, not now. Discovering your true identity is like being raised from the dead. You’ve felt it, like feeling muscles you never knew you had. So now what? We have the experience that nothing can take away from us.

Read Matthew 28:18-20

Jesus has given you his authority—his identity—for a purpose! To lead people to him. Not convert them—it’s not a car or a house to “work on”. Not to save them—that’s His job. When you simply are yourself, you will lead people to Jesus.

Whenever I have to get up in the middle of the night, which is often right now with four children under four, I try to make any personal stops at the bathroom without turning on the lights. I’ve got a system: feel the wall to the door and turn left, feel the counter to it’s corner, turn right—toilet. But without those guidelines I’d never make it without getting hurt. It would, at the very least, take much longer and leave me disoriented… and that could get ugly.

As we journey towards a maturing identity in God, how do we know we’re heading the right way? Personally, I want specifics—I need to know what I’m doing wrong so I can fix it and what I’m doing right so I can do it again.

Read Galatians  5

Paul transitions after verse 15. He says “if you want to follow rules, then this is what that means.” But… verse 16 says “I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives “.  Life in the Spirit of God is our true identity. What it looks like can be measured.

List the evidence of a sinful spirit from verse 16-21

List the evidence (fruit) of the spirit from verses 22-23

Now list the ones from list 1 that are present in your life and need to go.

List the ones from list 2 that you need improvement on.

To take this to the next level, ask a close friend to evaluate you on these lists.

I’d love to see the story of The Good Samaritan done today. Imagine an Iranian man’s car-jacked and brutally beaten and left lying on the side of the road bleeding… and bleeding. A Muslim priest walks by and avoids it for concern of being lumped in with terrorist rebellion.  A catholic priest walks past and after serious contemplation avoids the scene so as to not soil his congregation, because helping the man may lead him into his church. Then a rebellious student passes by. Their heart breaks unlike anything they have ever felt. They pick the man up and drive him to the hospital, all the while bleeding over their new car. At the hospital the student leaves his cell number and a lump of cash they were about to use for new school clothes to cover any expenses.

After telling this story in Luke 10 Jesus says “Now go and do the same.” it’s not just about discovering our own identity so that I can now feel good and secure. Rather the opposite. Once we’ve discovered it I believe we’ll live in a state of subtle unrest as we feel as God feels.

The question is can you form intentional pathways in your life that purposefully take you past the people that God’s heart breaks for, not matter your discomfort?

Read Mark 5:1-20

Did Jesus know that this man was in this area? Of course—he knows everything. Then why did he go?

What is the result of Jesus’ intentional pathway past this man?

Email me with any questions

I have a friend named Karen. She is someone that knew me as a teenager and lead a big part of my life towards Jesus. Karen has the greatest patience and biggest heart to see students return to Christ. But she can’t sing a lick. I can remember being in church with her after spending the week at camp with the youth group and hearing her sing. “Holy cow!” , I thought. It defined “tone deaf” for me.

If you’re out of the church and not familiar with it, worship conjures up movie scenes of bowing down. It’s actually not far off. If you’ve been in the church long enough though we think of worship as music. I do—I have a worship team. I go to worship practice. Worship isn’t really music at all. Which is great news for you Karens out there. We’ve even been conditioned to think that those who are better at music are somehow better at worship. But reality is this: it’s not about how you sing, but when you could. Think of “singing” more like “expressing” . Could you sing or express worship after losing $200? How about when you’re late, and you get a speeding ticket? Or when your days plans get completely wrecked?

The movie idea of bowing down is simply a symbol of acknowledgement—knowing that there’s something bigger than us. In our case, a God who is coming after us in all love and truth, knowing us for our true identity already.

Take a look at Acts 16:16-40

Put yourself in the modern day equivalent of Paul and Silas. What would be your emotions and reactions to your circumstances?

How many people were effected by their worship?

I like historical movies—ones set back hundreds of years ago. They used to do this thing called a seal. When any kind of correspondence was sent from one to another, to ensure the privacy of it, wax was melted onto the flaps of the letter and a stamp pressed into it. If the seal was broken you’d know the letter had been compromised. The various elaborate stamps serve as a return address—noting whether it was from a king, or a check-yes-or-no-whether-you-like-me note. Paul uses this this as an analogy for what the Holy Spirit does for us in Ephesians 1.

Study Ephesians 1. Really study it—don’t just read it. Look up some background info online. Ask God some questions about things. Put the chapter into your own words and sum it up in a sentence.

The Holy spirit serves as many things for those who call Jesus king of their lives—it gives guidance, convicts of sin, reveals truth. But it also seals. This is the primary passage for the proof of eternal security—meaning once sealed, always sealed.

While your identity can be stolen over and over—this is the battle we fight against—but as a Christ-follower you can never truly be lost. This confuses us. It’s unlike anything else in our world. The best description I can come up with is this: God the Father sent his son Jesus to offer the gift of being called his son or daughter. Only his sons and daughters can enjoy fellowship with Him.  Once you have been called a son of daughter of God, the Holy Spirit marks you and God will never not you his again. Spend some time thanking God for your seal.

Ever been held under water a bit too long? It happens to us all at least once. The fun comfort of the blurry sights under the water suddenly, and I mean suddenly, turn extremely fearful and scary.              There’s a small scene in G.I. Jane where as part of the training Navy Seals undergo, they are strapped on their backs with their hands behind them to a board while water is poured heavily on their faces. This act has become a popular phrase in the last few months—water boarding. But the Seals don’t use it for torture, rather to recondition reflexes.

The reflex that we have when held under water can be reconditioned to be more relaxed. In the same way we can recondition our reflexes to God. Over time we have learned to react to God in a certain way—ways that we have learned in one way or another. For instance, when we feel uncomfortable we remove the discomfort or remove ourselves from the situation. This is an act of the stolen identity.

When was the last time you were in a church worship service and heard a song you didn’t like? Think about your emotions then. When you were hurt by someone recently, what was your reaction?

The enemy would like us to think that we cannot change. I am who I am. That’s just the way I am made. That’s great. God did make you. The problem is… he didn’t make you with sin. You were made perfectly. Think about that… Flawless at your core. Your true identity is perfect to God. But sin has been conditioned in.

Read Proverbs 1

Verse 7 says that the fear of God is the foundation of all things. Some translations read “wisdom” or “knowledge”. What would it look like in your life if the only fear you had was God himself in all his love, mercy, and grace?

Where has wisdom been calling out to you to change some foundational parts of your identity to become more like Christ?

The freedom we crave—the one that leads to the seeking of adventure—is something that was built into us from the very beginning of time. It’s portrayed in movies like Braveheart (you’re not complete until you’ve seen this one) as something that we must fight for, and rightly so. See, there’s a reason that movies like Braveheart, The Matrix, and the Star Wars series go so well and reap so much financially. They show a fight between good and evil—oppression and freedom.

It’s a fight that was built into us as well. We all feel this struggle for freedom deep inside. What we must recognize is that the enemy would like you to believe that this struggle is against God. The truth that God purposefully built into you is that there is a war for your freedom for the enemy. Freedom from your stolen identity. Freedom to your true identity.

The journey towards this freedom has been called “maturity”, but in that word it takes on this idea that there is an end. One can become mature. But like we’ve said already, this journey never ends. Hopefully you’ve begun to see, find, discover, and unleash your true identity. The path towards freedom will be very similar to a war—battle after battle, death of parts of us that really hurt, but great victories after long hard fighting.

In this final leg of this part of the journey, prepare your heart for battle. Whether you realize it or not, you’re already in the war. The enemy is trying with all his might to simply convince you that you are not, and that he doesn’t exist. He is not as powerful as he’d like you to believe, but he is cunning. Don’t believe the lie. Fight the war. Win the battle.

Practice 7: The Word

This is the most vital and should be the most regular of all of these practices. Hebrews 4:12 says that “the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

20% of people who claim to be Christians never read their Bibles and 22% don’t do it daily. This is not complicated, but it is THE most attacked practice by the enemy. Your identity is found in The Word of God—his revealing to you who He is and thus, who you are. The enemy will sound like this: You deserve a break. Turn the alarm off. You can do it later. 15 minutes is the same as 30—it doesn’t matter. Do it tonight instead. You’ll never understand it anyway—it’s too much for you. The last thing you need is one more thing on your schedule. It was written for adults. You won’t get it.

And once you actually do get to it, distractions will come at you from the weirdest places. Anger. Your mind wandering. A feeling or pressing to accomplish other tasks first. The enemy knows it’s power. Look at a few verses from Psalm 119: vs. 25—I lie in the dust; revive me by your word. Vs. 28—I weep with sorrow ;encourage me by your word. Vs. 37—Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through your word.

Take a few minutes in silence to center yourself on hearing from God.

Now ask God this question: where do you want me to study in your word daily that will reveal who you are to me?

Now sit and wait for an answer.

Don’t be discouraged or tempted to feel foolish. This practice takes… practice. You must begin and press on though. If you should decide now that it’s not as important as I’ve described, then stop reading and don’t resume the rest until God’s broken through and rescued you from that lie.

Practice 6: Intentional Adventure

Ok so some just put the booklet down at the sound of adventure for fear of anything that’s not structured, while others just finally got interested. The idea is this: God would never have created a world like ours—full of cliffs and ice cream and sunsets and animals—and said “Now just do what I tell you and you’ll be safe!” But we’ve boxed God into a picture of a life preserver.

Just take a second to look around. Look outside. Think back to the most exciting, fun thing that has ever happened to you. God designed you with an identity that longs for intentional adventure. Look at the picture of Paul’s life in Acts 16. It reads like the itinerary of someone who can never stay still.

Don’t get me wrong, if God built you with a know-where-I’m-going kind of personality, he’s not defining your identity to be the opposite. But in all of us is a desire—for some great and for some small—to feel alive. To know that I can live through it. The enemy, though, has reached into our past and drug out all the hurtful times to try to convince us that we cannot make it. We often dismiss it as wisdom when in actuality the God of order finds order in adventure.

By it’s very nature, adventure is free-falling from one step to the next. The question is really in the identity of God—do you trust that he is who he says and can do what he says he can? The only way to know is to make a decision to follow. Say no and avoid the safe path. Start a Bible study. Have that conversation with the person you don’t know. Risk.

God risked his son for us—took the chance that the payment that was made would be accepted by humanity. Why not follow the same path? Why no offer the same sacrifice and say “Not my will (to be comfortable in my own kingdom), but yours be done”?

What would be the riskiest decision for you right now? Now analyze your motives. What is selfish and from you, and what is spurring you to adventure? God did not design a boring life.

Practice 5: Purity

I love the scene in Minority Report after Tom Cruise gets his eyes replaced and wakes up to get some food. He will not have the use of his eyes for some 8 hours, but the skeevy doctor (also the Russian cosmonaut from Armegeddon. I can’t help it—my brain just likes to make those connections) has left a sandwich and milk for Tom’s character in the fridge so he can eat while he recovers… next to a month-old version of the sandwich and milk. So John Anderton stumbles to the fridge and takes a huge bite of a the rotten, moldy sandwich and, after spitting it out, tries to wash the taste away with the bad milk.

Often this is how the first stumble back into our stolen identities looks. The enemy places a healthy desire next to a rotten action—sex is not bad, but sex outside of marriage is not God’s future for us. Drinking is not condemned in scripture, but being drunk is. Looking at a girl is not wrong, but picturing her sexually is a start towards pornography.

Why does God call us into purity? The same reason he allowed sin to enter the world. Without it we would know nothing of divine love, mercy, grace, or forgiveness, and we cannot define our true identity without these things.

As you practice purity, know this: it is not the end result that is God’s goal. You will never “reach purity”. It is the journey towards it that is the goal. Each step is a new goal leading to the next and each one uncovers more of God and us.

Read 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Ponder for a moment the second part of verse 19—”You do not belong to yourself.”

Our identity is actually God’s. He spent eternity designing it and gave it to us. We should not only discover it, but also maintain it. That’s what the practice of purity is all about.

Practice 4: Fellowship

Our Life Group is one of my favorite events each week. In the past, fellowship always meant 16 dishes of bad food that left the whole church smelling like cat food for a week and sitting with people that were socially awkward. But these people, my friends, in our Life Group are helping me redefine that (the food and the fellowship part).

“Fellowship” is first used in the Bible to describe someone’s relationship with God—”...Enoch lived in close fellowship with God for another 300 years.”  It changed in Acts chapter 2 when it began to mean what we see it as today—a deep bond of spiritual significance between people.

How do you see church? Have you been hurt or made to feel insignificant? When you have experience after with people with stolen identities, your vision becomes clouded. Because of people, our view of the church is messed up. Many of us see church as a spiritual feeding mechanism, and while it is, it is designed to spur us into growth. Many of us see it as a spiritual growth shot that lasts for a week, when we should see it as just another morning at the gym.

Fellowship though is a huge and overlooked part of church. Think about it… God bringing together people that claim devotion to him. Why is it not the relationship hub of our lives? If it’s not the church’s fault, the only one left to blame is here doing the reading.

Read Acts 2

The experience of the first mass Holy Spirit encounter was intense! Who is one person who you’ve had an intense or amazing experience with? What is that bond like?

Do you trust God to bring more those relationships to you at your church?

Often God will reveal parts of our true identity, and his, to us through other people. Fellowship—the deep spiritual  bond—is the way he will do it. What changes in relationships should you make based on this?

Practice 3: Emptiness

There’s nothing that competes with the motivation of boredom. When I first learned to play the guitar, I wrote a song called “I am so bored.” I don’t remember much of it, but the chorus went something like this: I am so bored. Oh lord won’t you take me away from here. Insert emo teenage angst here. Couple that with a shaved pony tail hair cut and free time and it’s the making of a hit.

What if we began looking at all our time—busy-ness and boredom—as a gift. A chance for us to get to know more about God. The practice of emptiness is not about feeling nothing, but rather about disposing of our own glamour and need for attention and utilizing the free will God gave us. I’m not saying that every spare moment you should be reading the Bible or praying, but using what God has given you.

How often have we tried to fill ourselves up with something to make ourselves feel better without simply posing the question to God “why did you bring me to this moment right now?”  The dangerous part to this is that when we selfishly fill ourselves up– be that our time or relationships—we’re listening to a lie that says “it will last”. Well, it doesn’t. We know this—we’ve experienced it. It actually expands our appetite and now it takes more and more for us to feel filled up.

Read Luke 12:22-34

What Jesus is teaching us here is to empty ourselves of the needs we think have and focus on the heart of God. What’s on your heart right now? What do you want to do at this instant? Now what do you think God wants to do with you right now? Where do these things overlap? Often the activities we want to do spring out of desires God has given us. Rather than steal them from you, he wants you to experience them even greater!

Practice 2: Prayer

Prayer is one of the most elusive practices for some Christians and the most simplistic for others. Why is that? Why are some “prayer warriors” (which makes it sound like much more fun then it actually is) but I struggle to do more than just the “Holy crap! Help!” prayers?

Jesus spent time in solitude, but also time praying. There’s something that has been lost in the generations since he set an example for us in Matthew 5—this is how you should pray: Our Father, who art…. Life should be a conversation with God. Like a conversation with anyone else.

The reason it’s become so obscure is this: talking face to face with someone forces me to either be honest or hide. For many of us we’ve been hiding behind stolen identities for so long that our own God doesn't even comprehend our talks with him. We try to impress others, communicate with others. The last thing we try to do, typically, is simply talk.

Read John 17

This is Jesus praying for his disciples. Remember that this is literary—poetic because of the context and date. In the day it was spoken, this would’ve sounded much different than what had been the example for so long.

List the categories of things that you notice Jesus pray for:

Now spend a few moments in silence and then transition into a conversation with God. Listen to what he’s pressing on your heart. He’s in control—discern between yourself and God and let his thoughts prompt yours. If you’re like me and have a hard time focusing, you may want  to have this conversation on paper—writing both your requests but also his responses.

Practice 1: Silence

Read the following verses and then the chapters that they are in:

Mark 1:35

Luke 4:42

Mark 6:46

Matthew 14:13

Luke 5:16

If Jesus needed solitude—time free of distraction or interruption, remote-ness—then we sure do. This is time used to connect with our God completely undistracted. This is going to be hard. Mentally prepare for it for a minute.

Find a timer that will beep or let you know without looking at it that some time has past—like the alarm on a watch. Set it for 3 minutes.

Now for the next few minutes just sit. Close your eyes to free you from the distractions. Be aware of your body and setting, but let your mind drift. It’s not about not trying to think, but about gaining space from the entanglements of the mind and it’s worries. Be aware of your breathing, but don’t control it. As you exhale feel the mind drift and gain space.

Now… “be still and know that I am God.”

Leg 3 of our journey takes us straight to the creator. Part of our false or stolen identity is a false identity of God. Think of all the different ways He is portrayed in the media: old, far away, angry. If we are to discover our true identity, then the only place that truth can be found is in Him. We are, as humans, reaching for this knowledge whether we acknowledge it or not. Embrace it now as part of who you are meant to be—seeking God.

The amazing thing about uncovering your true identity is that, contrary to the lies of the enemy, it’s actually extremely freeing. But to truly know who you are you must embark on an endless leg of your journey—getting to know God. If we can get to know him our entire lives now fall into a purpose—from the details of the daily routine to the life-changing decisions—they now all have eternal significance that lies on his shoulders and not ours. Can you feel the freedom creeping in? What if my friendships are not reliant on me to impress others, but on me listening to a Father that loves beyond compare and knows, even deeper than I do, my longing for companionship?

So we begin this never-ending leg of the trip. Perhaps this is your 700th beginning, or perhaps the very first intentional meeting of you and your creator. Either way, over time you will learn the exhilaration of feeling his control that is always found in love, and letting go of your own self preservation. Discovering your true identity is truly discovering that you are part of a bigger picture—a solid foundation of hope and future that doesn’t revolve around you. And here... there is freedom.

This leg will take us through 7 different practices that, if exercised, will continually grow our knowledge of our Father. Some of them you will find great comfort in, while others will challenge you to frustration and you’ll be severely tempted to give up. Know this: God is with you coming from the other direction. Not only are you pursuing him, but he is pursuing you. So take heart.

Who’s in your clique? Your inner circle? Why are they there? Do you remember a time when maybe someone else tried to enter it and, because of your stolen identity, you ridiculed them to make your false self feel better? If you’ve never been there, you’ve seen it or perhaps been on the other end.

Bringing all the good news of rescue and life to the outsiders (gentiles) was huge. Jesus himself said that he was coming first after his people—Israel. But Paul broke the rules (I know—some of you just got really excited that God condones breaking rules while others just questioned a God that does).

Read Acts 13:44-52

Who has been trying desperately to break into your circle? Is there someone? Or maybe you need to look for one to include.

What do you notice about Paul and Barnabas’ message in verses 46-47?

Make a list of 3 names that you will commit to pray for– that God would show you how to rescue them while just being your true self.

I hate getting lost. But you can only get lost one way: bad directions. Either the one giving the directions got them wrong or we didn’t pay attention. How about when God gives direction? What was the last thing you felt him tell you to do? Maybe you’ve never heard or felt him guide or direct you. Either way, take a few minutes right now and pray a prayer like this: Lord please show me how you want to direct me… and please give me direction. I trust your guidance. Amen.

Read Acts 13:1-12

Why did the leaders of the church pray and fast twice before sending Saul and Barnabas out?

What do you think the relationship was like between Saul and Barnabas? Go back and read Acts 9:27 and see where their relationship began.

God will rarely send you out alone. He will usually send a spouse or deep friend with you. And this is where many of us realize that we don’t have many deep friends like Barnabas who have found their own true identities. But they don’t take a lifetime to build. In fact they're probably in your life or close to you already.

Lord please reveal that relationship to us now—put a name and a face in our minds and please will you grant us the courage to begin to feed that relationship?

Have you ever had an epiphany? A paradoxical shift? It’s where the very foundation of a belief changes and leaves you excited, but rebuilding. This is what has happened to Saul. Something had drastically shifted. For many this would cause an internal riot between what was and what was coming—how do I convince the people in my life of this change? Is it worth the energy or should I just retreat?

But see through Saul’s example that there was little need for convincing and a greater need to live it out. One of the greatest epidemics in America is fake Christians—ones that call themselves followers of God but don’t actually follow Him. See, you can’t call yourself a Christ-follower and not live it out.

Read Acts 9:19-31

List the different ways in which Saul “lived out” the change.

Are any of these happening in your life?

One of the greatest weapons Satan has against us is to convince us that we’re fine where we are and rob us of the sense of adventure. God is calling you… YOU… to live a life that preaches. Maybe you’re not a preacher—that’s only one of the gifts. But along this journey, strive to uncover the gifts that accompany your true identity… and use them. Ask God for the opportunities to exercise them. Then see those chances and chase after them!

You know that kid with the reputation for being a bully? Ok, maybe he was a bully (if you didn’t know him… it was you), but bullies reputation were always bigger that real life, often like our fake identities. They ate rocks, beat up teachers, and could grow facial hair in forth grade.

Saul had a reputation, and it was true. He had worked hard to become the one that people feared. But now everything had changed and he had to start off on a new journey, repairing the reputation he had set with his stolen identity.

God calls on us to not just become our true selves, but to help rescue others. It reminds me of the 2nd Matrix movie—The Matrix Reloaded— where Neo has been rescuing others that were plugged into the lie of the Matrix.

Read Acts 9:10-19

What fears do you think Ananias had running through his head?

Obviously it helps calm our fears when God directly speaks to us as he did with Ananias. But he doesn’t do this often even in The Bible. How else can He help us overcome our own fears to reach out to those still “plugged into” the lie?

This is where a shift starts to happen. You have been prepared to discover your true identity, but to continue means getting our hands dirty in the world gone wrong. Decide today before God to devote your energy to him, taking advantage of every opportunity he sets in front of you. Know that you are participating in the greatest rescue mission of all time.

Scar Story: I was playing football once with a bunch of guys. We had been practicing for this game for weeks—it was against the alumni—those that had come before us… the old dudes. They had never lost.

As the quarter back snapped the ball to start one of our plays, I ran down the line mirroring him and waiting for him to throw a little screen pass at the far end of the line. Then, I was on the ground. The next few minutes were out of a bugs bunny cartoon—swirling stars, everyone standing over me as I lay flat on my back. I got hit hard by I guy twice my size… on my own team. Eleven stitches left a scar trailing down my left eye that sill itches when it rains.

Saul got hit hard—horse-to-ground is a good four feet. But he got hit by a light. For some of us we will work to unearth our true identities over time, but for others, the light will knock us off the horse.

Read Acts 9:1-9

In verse 5 Saul asks “Who are you, Lord.” It’s time for us to do the same. Ask god to reveal to you continually who He is. There is a galaxy of knowledge about him and many of us have never even asked to see Him.

Matthew 7:9-11 says “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.

God give us please the gift of knowing you so we can know ourselves.

We know little about persecution for our faith in Jesus, and we probably never will in America. But let’s try to imagine for a second that because of who you are, you are tagged as a threat to what’s right and accepted. Not only are things unavailable to you, but who you are is being physically threatened. This is the society that Saul helped to create. What we must realize is that the enemy—the prince of the air—controls many hearts on earth. But… he does not own them. What he means for harm God can use for good to help uncover our true identity.

In connecting with God over our true identity, persecution must become part of our lives—it is by pain and trial that we know “we can” through Jesus. As He says (in Bruce Almighty) “Triumph is born out of struggle, faith is the alchemist”.

Read Acts 8:1-3. See how even though we are surrounded by people lulled to sleep with stolen identities, God still changes the world through us.

Verse 2 talks about the “devout men” that came to burry Stephen. Devout... like him. Able to remain in the midst of persecution. This is a mark of someone living in their true identity.

Ask God for great strength in the middle of trial. Perhaps you’re in the middle of one now. If you see no persecution in your life than take this to heart: the enemy sees nothing in your life worth fighting against. Pray that God would teach you to fight… by having to fight. Embark on the adventure of struggle with God at your side.

There some embarrassing moments in my life that I look  back on that I laugh about. But there are some that just make me want to cringe physically . Those are the ones that weren’t embarrassing at the time, but, as I reflect now, I get this immense sense of regret. One such time was a materialization of extreme pride. Another was when I felt the need for acceptance so bad that I was willing to do anything for it.

Saul’s Identity had been stolen and we first see him in Acts 7:58 saying “Stoning? Here! I’ll hold your coats!”. The again a verse later simply saying “Rock on” after the murder of Stephen. While reflecting later on these times must have brought him great regret, but he must have learned from them as well. So let’s do the same.

Read Acts 7:51-8:1. what about Saul’s small parts in this story stand out to you? What feelings do you think were running through him?

Write down your top three most embarrassing moments.

What were the feelings that you acted on during these times and what was your reaction to them long term—now looking back?

We cannot be distracted by the enemy’s ploy to get us to run backwards—following what we’ve done in the past. Keep the past close. Ask God to not let you forget it. Ask him for the opportunity to relive some of these events so you can choose differently. Then… get ready. He is a God of rescue and redemption. One that loves to give you what you need for success.

Anger is not bad—after all, God got angry. But how do you tell the difference between bad, selfish anger and Godly loving anger?

Read Acts 7:51-60

How can you tell that Stephen’s anger was the Godly, loving kind?

What characterizes the anger of the church leaders?

Phase 3: Angered

After being threatened and persuaded, we inevitably become angered. This selfish anger at the rendering and exposure of our true selves often comes out in very immature ways, which makes it easy to distinguish (see vs. 57—what are they? 7 years old?).  Notice though that as selfish anger flares up, the true identity of Stephen calms down, leaving him crying out in vs. 60 “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!”

When was the last time you got angry? What was it about?

Notice that it’s  hard to remember the selfish reasons for anger specifically, but much easier to recall the loving anger.

Ask God to reveal to you the strength of loving people because he made them. Ask him to anger you only over the things that anger him.