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Do you know who you are? Do others know who you are? How is our identity formed anyway? Let’s explore, I think God has an idea of who you are, since he created you for a purpose; he put certain characteristics into you to help you carry out that plan.  It’s comforting to know that God knows us and loves us so much that he wants you to know your identity even more than you want to know.

When we are born into a family they give us an identity.  Fill in your name ______________ you meet your parents and maybe some siblings and as you grow up you adopt the identity of who you are in relation to your family and what they say and think of you.  If you are raised in a family that is well adjusted and encouraging you may start to believe the things they tell you.  You might feel pretty good about your self; but what if you grow up in a family that’s maladjusted and shaming?  What do you suppose you will believe about yourself?  Which ever kind of family you grew up in, and whatever you ended up believing about yourself will be your identity, but what matters is who God says you are. Let’s dive in to the word of God to see what the Bible says about who you are!

1.)  You show up in this world separated from God because you inherited sin from the first people God created. Every generation since the beginning are born separated from God.  Thankfully he had a plan to bridge the separation gap, that’s called Salvation.  But until Salvation you are brought up in the nurture or environment of your biological family like I mentioned before.

I’d like to share a diagram which shows the way we were made from the beginning.

You were made with a spirit, soul, and a body.  God gave you a spirit so you could relate to him.  Your spiritual part consists of three components: Intuition, Conscience, Communion.

•  Intuition is the ability to discern spiritual things from God.
• Conscience is the ability to discern right from wrong.
• Communion is the ability to commune with God in relationship.

God gave you a soul which is the psychological part of you so you could relate to other people and have relationships.  Your soul consists of three components:

• Mind is the part that can think and reason and solve problems and create.
• Will is the part of your soul where you can freely chose or decide what you do.
• Emotions is the part of you that feels things, good or bad.  Better known as your feeler.

God also gave us a third element known as our body which is the physiological part of us, which allows us to relate to the environment on the planet.  We can experience nature, the four seasons and whether we are hot or cold or whether we are injured.

Our bodies can:

• See
• Hear
• Taste
• Smell
• Feel through touch

God is three person’s in one, he has three distinct elements, and we are made in his image so he gave us three distinct elements as well.  This is what we were given when we show up on planet earth.  Everything we need to function here, except we are separated from God because of our inheritance of sin from our forefathers.

My family of origin was maladjusted and I didn’t learn about these elements of life until later in life, so I struggled in the household where I was raised.  I personally was not given the freedom to develop an identity of my own, I was controlled in every way and not allowed to make decisions for myself.  Of course this stunted my ability to mature in many ways.  I left home with the identity that was formed in me by my family.  Maladjusted and in no way aware of who God was, how he fashioned me and no idea what he had in mind for my life path. So without the influence of God in my life I was left wide open to what and who the world said I was.

It wasn’t until around 21 that I came to see my need for something or someone greater than myself.  I was seeking or searching for something to fill the emptiness inside.  Filling my life with the things the world had to offer, only left me empty and a life without purpose.

The Holy Spirit was wooing me into the knowledge and a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.  At the point of belief and acceptance of what Jesus had to offer me in exchange for the life I had, things began to fall away from my life because I no longer had the same desires.  My purpose was to know God through Jesus Christ.  He came into my Spirit and changed me from the inside out.  Because I was a walking wounded person, living separated from God for so many years I now had to learn what God had planned for my life and learn who God says I am.   Of course who he says I am was totally different from what I had personally believed. He gave me a new Identity.  You may have heard the term, Born Again, it means you were born all over again into a New Family and you get the Identity of your new family.  He also gave you Birthday Gifts!

• Salvation
• Assurance
• Security
• Acceptance

These gifts are pretty awesome for someone who felt empty and insecure, inferior, inadequate, and rejected by family.

His word says:

• I am his Child
• A saint
• Bond servant
• A witness for him
• Victorious
• Citizen of Heaven
• An Ambassador
• More valuable than gold
• The righteousness of God
• More than a conqueror
• Loved without measure
• Accepted in the beloved
• Secure in him

I also have the Fruit of the Spirit, which is the character of Jesus Christ because he lives within me and when he lives inside you, you have everything he has.

Now I could offer up all the scriptural references in the Bible about each one of these characteristics, but I feel led to make you look them up in your own bible so you can read them for yourself.

So now that you know what God gave you when you became a  member of His family you now know he gave you a new identity.  So now, you have a choice to make.  What will you choose to do with what you have been given?

I offer mentoring for women who want to grow & learn what God had planned for them!

To sign up for mentoring, e-mail me from the contact page.

The purpose of this writing is to share a way forward to freedom from life long struggles, things unbeknown to us that have become part of our identity.

Many of my struggles have been in the area of family relationships.  The hopes & dreams I had for life, in my family and someday family of my own.  I hoped I would be treated with respect, treated fair and have the support & love we all desire.  A family who would have your back & stick up for you; so what happen along the way?

What I didn’t know then, thank God, I know now.  I’m now aware of the struggle between what God intended and the reality that there was another force working in the midst of all the events of my life.  Satan’s plan was to disrupt at every turn, to keep me from knowing the truth about who I was and that God had created me for so much more. Even after I became a believer in Christ and learned we had an enemy, (called Satan) and his tactics, it took the Holy Spirit to show me how he work’s.  In a sense he’d show me something is wrong here or, is that right?  Does that line up with the Word of God?  It’s easy to just go on and not give the promptings enough attention, life is busy right?  Yes,  life is busy but there are consequences  to not paying attention to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  It can give Satan an opening into your life and you not even know it.  Now I know I don’t want that, so what do you do when you become aware?  You call on the name of the One who knows.  The One who made you, the One who had a plan for you all along.  How about you, would like to know what God had planned for you?  Read on and let’s explore.

I felt God wanted me to step back and look at my life as a whole so I could see those areas where my path got side tracked by the enemy.  I can’t really know any of that unless I know what God’s Word say’s about me, (I belong to him).  Jeremiah 29:11 ESV say’s, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans for your welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”  So, I see he’s for me and not against me.  He had something planned for my future and to give me hope.

God had good things in store for me, but Satan, (the enemy) had plans to decieve me through his lies and harmful circumstances he placed across my path.  Without the knowledge of how our enemy works we might not realize how he can trip us up.  So, here’s how he works, any time we heard someone say mean and disrespectful things to us or about us, we can know it’s the enemy because the Lord doesn’t think or say such things about us because we belong to him.  It’s Satan working or speaking his lie’s through the person saying those things to you.  It is helpful moving forward to know the proper armour for the battle, so you can fight against the lies.  Ephesians 6:11-13 NKJV say’s: “put on the full armour of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of the age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.  Therefore, take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

He tricks us into thinking it’s about the person saying those things, like there must be something wrong with us or they wouldn’t say those things, right?  Well, the enemy wants you to believe that, he wants you to take it personally so he can interfere with the relationship.  That’s his goal most of the time, drive a wedge so he can plant doubt in your mind about your value.

So, unless you know your value in God’s eyes and see Satan’s tactics in motion, you will take up an offense and the enemy will have won.

So you might want to know, how do you move forward now that you know the facts and Satan’s tactics.  You can put into action the truth you know and choose with your will not to ¹take up the offense.  If you respond with your emotions he will have won and you won’t experience victory.   In Ephesians we learned that it’s really against the principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

When you become aware the enemy is at work, you can know there is battle work to be done.  But, let’s think about that for a moment.  He can only get a foothold if we have already given him some ground.  Like, he comes knocking on your door and you answer the knock by opening the door and listen to what he has to say.  That’s your cue to check it out against the Word of God.  If it’s not true you just say, “not true” and shut the door.  Now if you invite him in and entertain him, he’s captured your attention and can feed you more lies.  Entertaining the enemy is asking for more than you can handle in your own strength.  Read  2  Corinthians 10:3-5.  “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does.  The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.  On the contrary, they have devine power to demolish strongholds.  We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets it’s self up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” Take every thought captive my friend, don’t entertain the lies Satan feeds you by those who are disguised as friends and family.  His plan is to thwart God’s plan, and drive a wedge with the promise to get there some other way.  Maybe a short cut or something that appeals to some part of you that wants something for yourself.

The word says in John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy.  I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”  John 8:32 “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”  Stay close to Christ and entertain the truth of God’s Word, then you will recognize the enemies lies and do battle.

The best way to battle is to close the door to lies and secondly, read the Word of God out loud, Satan can’t stand that.  God says, as Children of God he has given us authority over the enemy.  That means we can use God’s power through Christ if he lives in you.  You can renounce Satan and his lies in the name of Jesus!  Satan must obey the power of Jesus,  so if we use Jesus power in His name the enemy will leave because he can’t stand that name.

Unforgiveness is another tactic Satan uses to get a foothold.  We can talk about this in another article.  Many are set free by the act of forgiveness.  I’ll explore this one soon.

Send me a text if you liked this article.

I’d love to chat with you!

In His Service,

Jane

I personally find the way Jesus performed miracles fascinating. There are many accounts in the Bible of people being healed physically and sometimes that included being delivered from evil spirits who tormented them.

What I’d like to share in this article is my own encounter with my first miracle, which was Spiritual healing.

The first healing came when I surrendered my life to Jesus Christ and received a new life. You see, this is probably the biggest miracle you will ever encounter. Let me lay it out like this. We are born separated from God when we come into this world. If you have heard the story of Salvation you might know what I’m talking about; if you haven’t, let me tell you. It’s worth giving it some attention.

We all struggle with an array of things due to being born separated from God. Sin is what the Bible defines missing God’s perfect standard. Because God is perfect that is His standard and from the beginning of time that was His intention for all His creation. Satan, the enemy of God, was jealous that God would make us His crown creation made in His image. That makes us pretty awesome; we were actually made in God’s image.

That would mean we were like Him. God is three persons in one: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We also have three parts: spirit, soul, and body. He gave us a spirit so we could relate to Him and He gave us a soul so we could think and feel to make decisions, and a body to relate to the environment we live in. We were even given free choice to obey him so as to not be like robots, we could choose to obey him or not. Read the Creation story of man and woman and what God intended for them. Genesis 2 – 4 tells how they were deceived and the ultimate fate of mankind after they disobeyed God and were tempted by Satan. They were deceived from that day forward and expelled from their garden of paradise. So, if you are wondering why we struggle, it’s because what happened to them is what we have inherited from them. Every generation since has struggled with missing God’s perfect standard.

God did make provision for us through his perfect son Jesus Christ, to repair our separation from Him. God’s perfect standard was met through Jesus and He paid the price for our disobedience (sin). Only someone who is perfect like Jesus could restore us to right standing with God. He now calls us his children when we receive His Son Jesus Christ. (John 1:12).

Now having laid that out in the simplest of form, I want to move on to why that was my first healing Miracle. I was healed spiritually, being restored to right relationship with my Creator (Titus 3:5,6). Everything else and all other healings in this time period we are born in depends on this one issue. You see, God is the author of everything He created and so He knows how it’s supposed to work. Being restored into right relationship means that I can co-operate with Him when I choose to.

Until I receive what Jesus did to restore me into right relationship, I have no power of my own to live differently. I wasn’t a new creation yet, but now I have the life of Christ and his power inside me (Col. 1:27). I think that’s the first miracle. Having the power of Christ living on the inside of me leading and guiding me through life. No longer being left to my feeble and deceived whims. I can choose to access the power of God through Jesus Christ to live according to God’s plan for my life which He had in mind for me since the beginning of time. So, you see, you were not an accident when you showed up on planet earth. God so wanted to have a relationship with you that He picked the time in history that you would show up and where, meaning what continent you would be born and who would give birth to you and the circumstances of your birth. Because He is omniscient, He knows all the details of everyone born on the planet; past, present and future. This is pretty remarkable, that the Creator of the Universe knows all about you and has a plan for your life, and has provided a way to restore our relationship with Him to carry that plan out.

The miracle takes place the moment we receive what He did for us through His perfect Son, Jesus Christ, who died in our place on a cross for our sins. We didn’t have to do anything or jump through hoops to receive all that He has planned for us. Now, the only requirement is admitting that you can’t live the life he had planned for you without Him. Acknowledge we have missed God’s perfect standard and receive what he has provided. From then on, He makes you a brand new person (2 Cor. 5:17). He will give you what you need to live a new life. Let the journey begin!

You may still struggle against the old thoughts and patterns you learned before you set out on this new journey, but now God has made provision for you. When we realize we’ve blown it (acting like the old person), we need to acknowledge we missed the mark (called sin), and listen to Him, read His word and talk to Him; He will lead and guide you. By the way, that’s what they call prayer. He wants you to live a victorious life even more than you want to, so He is just waiting for you to call on Him, ask Him, talk to Him about what’s on your mind.
So, it’s pretty miraculous that you get to have a relationship and talk to the Creator of the Universe. What does a relationship consist of? Talking and listening, acknowledging who He is and receiving what He has planned for your life. You will have the most fulfilling life possible if you live the one, He has planned. I’m not saying everything He has planned for your life will be easy, but He knows what it will take to stretch you to make you grow to become your best you!

Stayed tuned… I have other stories to share, some of physical healing and some of miraculous provision from Our Creator.
Share your stories with me or ask questions; I’d love to chat about it!

How many of us have the need for healing in our relationships? Most of us have someone in our life that really rubs us the wrong way. Sometimes we fight and bicker and use an array of tactics to deal with these stressful relationships. A lot of us use the ways we learned from our family. Here are three, to name a few:

1. Fight: We don’t mind getting into a shouting match to prove we are right.
2. Flight: This is not worth it, and flee, walk away, run, I’m out of here.
3. Stuff: We don’t deal with it and hold it all inside. Pretend it’s not bothering us.

Let’s look a little deeper at what’s going on here.

Number one’s personality wants to feel better, so they want to duke it out in a shouting match because they want to be right. Getting things out also gives a release, then we move on. The other person is left feeling violated and stepped on.

Number two’s personality wants to take flight and flee the uncomfortable encounter altogether. Just let me out of here. We insulate ourselves from any kind of conflict, thus we don’t grow or develop a depth, but live life on the surface. The other person is left hanging wondering why they can’t penetrate your life about anything. Not great for relationship building.

Number three’s personality will take it in and stuff it, internalize it, let it eat away at them… all the while pretending that everything is just fine. This way is dishonest to yourself and to others, giving the enemy a foothold into your life to rob you of an authentic life. All the while no one really knows you on the inside, which feels empty.

Which tactic do you use? Have you done all three at different times in different situations, depending on who you are with?

I know I have–and to be honest–they have all been a bit uncomfortable for me. It’s uncomfortable because I think it’s all about me at the moment; I might even feel threatened. So, sometimes Flight might be right. Is it ever right to duke it out? This usually happens when nothing else has worked yet, I’m not feeling heard. My voice elevates and now I want to prove my point. It usually doesn’t end well. Then sometimes I stuff it because I’ve felt I’m not important enough to the other person to speak openly without being judged and I don’t want to rock the boat so to speak. So you pretend you’re fine and you go along; you want to be accepted, right? You may be safe in the moment, but what about later. Are you going to be okay? Does what happened bother you? Do you hear an inner voice telling you, you are just a hypocrite? You should have spoken up?  If I had the guts, I would have given them a piece of my mind. I mull it over and over and my feelings become turned inward. That’s the kind of stress we end up carrying around inside. Over the course of time it may affect our health.

One thing’s for sure, all three approaches affect the relationships we have with others. Is there another way? I think there is. Let’s look at what Jesus Christ did when faced with difficult people. You know He encountered countless people that were judging him, accusing Him, asking Him for all kinds of things. We as people are quite needy and will usually do what ever it takes to get our needs met even if they are just perceived needs. Sometimes we can’t tell the difference between a want and a bonafide need. This usually causes a problem. Have you ever wondered why or how Jesus could deal with people so effectively? He had the knowledge to know what to apply to who and when because He was God incarnate. He knew everything about who He was dealing with, so He knew their needs.

Which leads to our alternative plan in dealing with others, or family. When Jesus left this world and ascended into heaven, He promised us the Holy Spirit. John 14:25-27 says: “All this I have spoken while still with you, but the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”

I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a good deal to me. He didn’t leave us here to figure this stuff out by ourselves. I know for myself that in my struggle for healing in my family relationships, and I’ve had my fair share. If I had known what He was offering in the midst of my trial’s, things may have turned out better.

At first, I looked to see how Jesus dealt with people. He was always respectful and He spoke truth, He never lied or covered things up. He dealt with it and then He moved on. Sometimes, the right thing was to not speak up or call out their sin because of course He is all knowing and knew the person wasn’t ready to deal or face it. He never got into a shouting match with anyone over something they did to Him. Oh, the one time He got angry was in the temple when people were defiling the Temple. Now there are stories about Him leaving situations, like when the angry mob was trying to throw Him over a cliff. He was taking his orders from His Father, knowing His time was not yet come (Luke 4:29,30). He wasn’t leaving out of fear; He knew the plan and acted appropriately. As for holding things in, we know if left unchecked this will breed resentfulness. I know Jesus never sinned so we know He was not resentful, nor did the events He encountered turn to bitterness, which is an extension of resentfulness not dealt with.

The one thing we all have in common is that when we receive Jesus Christ, we hit a home run. He didn’t leave us here on our own. He gave us the Holy Spirit so we have the life and resources needed to deal with people. They don’t call Him “The Holy Spirit” for nothing. You see, if Jesus was one with the Father and our life is hidden in Christ, we have everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3)
“For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3 ESV). Now because my life is hidden in Christ, I can call upon Him in the moment of trial and ask for Him to lead and guide me through this situation. He’s the one with the knowledge of every situation and knows how things need to be handled.

Our challenge is to learn how to surrender or turn over the situation to Him and listen. That might sound easy but it’s something you have to learn as you spend time with Him, and what better way to get to know Him than to read the word of God written in the Bible. Only He knows what is needed in these situations because He knows both sides of the situation.

Knowing Him and His character will most certainly develop humility which will bring about a host of wise responses to our loved ones and beyond.

Stay tuned, we can explore this more if you’d like. Call me or send me a message, I’d love to chat with you.

I thank IAM tv for allowing me to post a two part testimonial interview. These videos are now on my testimony page here.