JOY

Oh, I am so excited to share this Blog!  If you know me well, then you know that my favorite word is JOY!  I get almost giddy when I or someone else says the word.  That sounds a little goofy, right?  But I know where joy comes from.  You see, true joy comes from having a right relationship with Jesus Christ.  It is that peace that surpasses all understanding.  No matter what I face, I know God is right there by my side.  He will never leave me nor forsake me.  It's knowing that the God of the Universe loves me unconditionally.  In fact, He loves me so much that He sent His only Son to pay the ultimate debt and become the atoning sacrifice for my sins.  Wow!  Just thinking about what my Savior did for me, I get overwhelmed. 

This past week a friend gave me a magnet that had the word JOY on it used in an acrostic. J-Jesus, O-Others, Y-Yourself (In that order!).  She knows that's my favorite word.  I love it and love that it came from her heart.  I put it on my refrigerator, where of course, I go alot.  I look at it as a constant reminder of how my relationship with Jesus should be.  If He is Lord of my life, then He needs to be number one.  He needs to be my first priority.  My first love.  Mark 12:36 says, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength."  This love encompasses all of me. My heart, soul, mind, and strength.  That puts all of my focus on Him.  In the world we live in, this is easier said than done.  With so many distractions during my day, it's easy to lose focus and to put somone or something before God.  Father, please forgive me when I do this!  Next, we should put others second.  1 John 3:16-18 says, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.  If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?  Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."  When we show compassion for others and help those in need, we are showing the love of Christ.  We are being a true Christ follower.  Father, please help me show agape love, unconditional love, to others.  I never want to miss an opportunity to be your hands and feet!  Finally, we are to put ourselves last.  Does that mean that we are not as important?  No!  That means that if we keep God first, others second - God will bless our lives beyond anything we could ever dream or imagine.  Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."  What a great promise from God!  Always seek Him and His ways and He will bless you.  Psalms 37:4 says, "Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart." Father, I pray I always seek you and your will and that the desires of my heart reflect your desires. 

I have the privilege of mentoring a mom of one of our students and in conversation with her today, she asked, "How do I help my kids understand what really matters in this life?  How do I help them seek after God?"  My response was, "JOY!"  Teach them to put Jesus first, others second, and themselves third.  Not only in word, but by your actions.  The story that unfolds in front of them, is how they learn the most.

JOY!  What an incredible word with incredible meaning!  Where do you find your joy?  Is it Jesus, Others, Yourself (in that order)?  Or, do you let the things of this world bring you happiness that will fade and leave you looking and longing for more and more.  Only true joy comes from God!  And that's through having that right relationship with Him.  It's all in our priorities.  Seek that lasting JOY!

His Humble Servant,

Angie Burkeen

 

                                                                      Thanks Julie!

Our Identity in Christ

Well, I haven't Blogged in a while.  Almost two years to be exact!  But I have found this topic very blog worthy.  Over the past month or so, there has been so much emphasis and attention on the "Dove" commercial showing sketches of women who have described themselves and then a sketch of that same woman described by someone else.   While this is a great tool to use to show how hard we are on ourselves, we should never lose sight of the fact that we don't find our identity in how others see us.  Nor do we find our beauty that same way as well.  I had a discussion with someone about this just yesterday and it really got me thinking about how others see us and how we take so much stock in how others percieve us.  I did this exercise on my own, just to see if what I thought would be said of me would be.  If you have seen me, you know that my nose is a very noticable part of my face.  I am proud of my nose.  My mom and every one of her siblings has this very beautiful nose.  I also have freckles and they tend to come out more after I've been in the sun.  I also have hazel eyes that are very distinct because they change colors depending on what I wear. I asked a couple of people to describe my face, and guess what they said?  After both said I had pretty eyes, the very next statement by both people was that I have a ball on the end of my nose.  Really?!!! That's what you see!!!  They weren't being mean.  That's what they saw.  They even made light of it.

Here's my point.  I know my nose is distinct.  But it wouldn't be me if I had a different nose.  So their comment didn't really bother me.  But my identity is not found in how others see me.  Yes, I see physical things on myself.  Others, even with good intentions may see those same things.  We all have a physical mark of our identity.  If nothing else, our finger print is unique to us.  But what about our personal identity?  What defines who we are?

Imagine if the cross of Jesus Christ was the most dominant marking of your self-image?  You'd know that you are so loved!  You'd be so stable and confident!  You'd be enthusiastically sharing the grace of the Lord with everyone you meet!

That's the key!  In Christ is our true identity.  That is our freedom to be who God designed us to be.

There are 160 verses in the Bible that shows our identity in Christ.  It must be really important if God's word gives that much claim to our identity.  It's not just a matter of claiming Bible verses for ourself though.  To have identity in Christ means that I'm placing confidence for my life and eternity in the Lord Jesus Christ.  It means I am living my life in such a way that honors and pleases my Lord.  It means that I want others to see Jesus in me! 

So the next time you look in the mirror, try to see yourself the way God sees you, "fearfully and wonderfully made." (Psalms 139:14)    You are created in the image of God.  "You are somebody special, because God does not make junk!"  (I used to have a poster on my wall that said this.)  Here are some of the great blessings of having our identity in Christ:

There is no condemnation for us (Romans 8:1)
We can never be separated from God's love (Romans 8:39)
We who are many form one body (Romans 12:5)
We have wisdom from God (1 Corinthians 1:30)
Our labor is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58)
We are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17)
We become God's children (Galatians 3:26)
We have every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3)
We have the forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7)
We were also chosen (Ephesians 1:11)
We are for the praise of his glory (Ephesians 1:12)
We have been seated in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 2:6)
We've been given the incomparable riches of God's grace (Ephesians 2:7)
We may approach God with freedom and confidence (Ephesians 3:12)
We are light (Ephesians 5:8)
Our joy overflows (Philippians 1:26)
All our needs are met according to his glorious riches (Philippians 4:19)
We are holy and faithful (Colossians 1:2)
We have our hope of glory (Colossians 1:127)
We are rooted and built up (Colossians 2:7)
We will rise from the dead (1 Thessalonians 4:16)
We can give thanks in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
We have faith, hope and love (1 Timothy 1:1,14)
We have the promise of life (2 Timothy 1:1)

I think the writer of Proverbs sums it up best, "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." Proverbs 31:30  Our identity is in Christ.  No one else sees us the way He does.  Let others see Him in you!

His Humble Servant,

Angie Burkeen