Reclaiming our stolen identities…

If you have been keeping up with the series that we have been going through the past two weeks, Identity Theft, you will know what this post is all about.  For those of you that are keeping up online or have been a bit out of the loop, this might help…

Our series is focusing on finding our identities in being in covenant with God and in being sons and daughters of the King.  I won’t go into how amazing those two identities are, but please check out our talks section to get up to speed. (Please note, as we are shifting our website to a new server, there are some glitches here and there.  Unfortunately our talks section has some, please keep checking back!)  A key point of the series is that many of us have allowed those true identities to be stolen, so now we need to get them back.

This past week we talked about the first step in reclaiming our true identity.  And it is pretty straightforward.

The first step in reclaiming our true identity as someone who is in covenant with God is to realize that we need to and can.  We start with a simple realization.  A change of our minds if you will.  We lock into the thought that we are capable of reclaiming an identity that some of us had stolen years ago, and that once we do, we will see God move in some amazing ways in us and around us.

To help in that process, we are having a couple of postings to keep this thought process in mind as we prepare for next week’s focus on specific steps we can take based on where we are in the overall process.  You won’t want to miss it!  But instead of jumping too far too quickly, let’s take some smaller steps that will help us to make both processes more meaningful to our souls.

Between today and tomorrow, read Acts chapter seven.  This is the synopsis of how God had interacted with the Israelites from Abram (before he was Abraham) all the way through the day Stephen was killed.   As you are reading it, reflect on the question, How was God’s interaction with the Israelites impacted by his covenant with them? Spoiler alert…  God proved that he would keep his end of the bargain even when the Israelites didn’t.

He is still like that today.  You can absolutely count on him for two things.  Okay, you can count on him for quite a bit more than two, but let’s look at those two! 🙂  You can count on the fact that if you are not covenantally connected to God, he very much wants you to be.  And also, if you are, you can be certain that he will honor his end of the covenant. In fact, in Romans, Paul was referring to the Jews when he said this under the guidance of the Holy Spirit:  True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful?  Of course not!  Even if everyone else is a liar, God is true.” Romans 3.3,4 NLT

God is promising us that he will stick with us and that as we turn our lives over to him, we will discover our amazing calling of being those who have experienced true connection with God and are called to share that opportunity with others.

Try and take some time to reflect on chapter seven and those thoughts.  Then let’s connect again in a couple of days and keep the conversation going.

Please know, I love hearing thoughts that you have.  Please comment back so we can have some web-interaction going!

Peace, Jim

What’s on the calendar for this week?

1. HomeGroup 101:  Wednesday (25th) & Thursday (26th) @ 7.00 @ 130 Jackson.

Looking for a small group of people to connect with?  Join us for HomeGroup 101 – a time to learn about what HomeGroups are, meet leaders and members in the different groups and hangout at the Breakzone (Squires) for some games of pool and bowling.   HomeGroup 101 will meet on the steps in front of Squires at 6:45 Wed. or Thur. this week.  note: HG 101 is for NEW students as well as former HG members!

2. Gobblerfest: Friday (27th) from 3pm to 1.30a (Squires/College Avenue/Downtown Blacksburg area)

Gobblerfest is an event hosted by Virginia Tech.   Stop by [nlcf]’s table and say HI!

3. Wii Bowling Competition: Saturday (29th) @ 8pm in 130 Jackson.

You can either come in teams of 2 or 4, but there will also be a solo competition.  Prizes will be awarded.  Sign up during HG 101 or email [email protected]

Mark your calendars:

Kickoff Hokie Football with a Hokies vs. Boise State Tailgate: Monday – September 6th @ 6pm @ 130 Jackson.

[nlcf]’s Annual Fall Retreat will be Friday/Saturday – October 29th/30th.  More details to come.