Succeeding from your Identity

Introduction

Happy New Year

Introduce self

dismiss kids

Excited about the new year and the new possiblities. Looking forward to Victory Night on the 21st with a potluck and Lord’s Supper beforehand. Potluck starts at 5 and we will have all of our tables and chairs out for the night. Come fill them up and spend time reflecting on who Jesus is and what Jesus has done in your life

Today we start a three week series on habits.

What do you think of when you think of a habit? A good habit like working out? Maybe a bad habit like smoking?

Maybe, you are like some of us where the idea of doing the same thing over and over again causes a slight tinge of anxiety. That’s mean. To the point I had to look at them differently and say I don’t have habits but I have a routine.

A routine, to me, is a general framework work inside of but the actual task or habit inside of that framework can change.

Jesus was a person that had habits and so did Paul.

Jesus was one person who could have made the great excuse “I never have time to pray” but instead he often made time to get away from the crowds and pray

Paul had a habit or custom to going to the temple and he woudl share with non believers.

“Our habits will make us or break us. We become what we repeatedly do.”-Sean Covey

And what we repeatedly do should be based on who we want to become.

Today I want to spend sime time talking with you about who you are or who you are becoming in Jesus. We are going to look at identity in Christ and how to accompish your goals/resolutions to become who He made you to be.

I know New years resolutions get a bad rap. And I along with others will poke fun at them a bit because of the statistics, but in all seriousness, it’s never a bad idea to create a resolution or a goal. That doesn’t matter if it’s the beginning of the year, middle of the year, or on a thursyda at 3:34pm.

The problem is that when most people set a goal, they focus on the end state rather than the means by which they are going to accomplish it.

Character-Person setting goals

It has been said that a goal without a plan is just a wish and you don’t live in disney world so your wishes aren’t coming true.

And while a plan on how to accomplish something is vital to the execution of it, there is a more important question that should be asked.

Should I be pursuing this goal at all?

Problem-Setting goals without a regard to identity in Jesus

If I were to tell you that as your pastor I’m also pursuing an MD and a law degree. What would you say?

That doesn’t make sense. Are either of those three bad things? Nope. However, as your pastor, a husband, and father of three, I don’t really need those things in my life do I?

Why? It’s not because the goals are bad it’s because they are not based on my identity in Jesus.

I’d love to have an MD, God hasn’t called me to be a medical doctor.

A law degree woudl be fun, God hasn’t called me to be a lawyer.

You see when we establish goals or resolutions to pursue that don’t line up with who God has made us to be, we at best find ourselves doing things right, but not doing the right things.

I believe God has called you with a purpose in life. Remember what Romans 8:28 says?

Romans 8:28 “28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

We hear that verse and focus only on the things workign together for good during difficult times. Look at the last part. “Called according to His purpose” I beleive if you are a follower of Jesus , you have been called according to His purpose. But are you living in that calling? Are you living in the identity Jesus has given you?

Agitated- Goal becomes about thing being done not who you become

When you set a goal without considering your identity in Jesus, you are focusing on what you can do rather than who He wants you to become.

Many can relate to the “I’m gonna lose 10 lbs” goal, right?

Maybe some of you have had to have the goal of quitting smoking?

When we are purusing these goals, we often speak of them as tasks to accomplish.

Someone will invite you to eat “No, I can’t. I”m gonna lose 10 lbs.”

Or someone invites you to go smoke with them “no, I’m trying to quit.”

Neither one of those statements are attached to the person you are trying to become, they are about the thing you are trying to do.

And when you live trying to do a bunch of stuff rather than becoming who God says you are, you find your identity attached to the level of perfection or success by qhich you accomplish those tasks.

And what happens when you don’t accomplish the task based goal? You feel worthless, defeated, like you’ll never be abel to do it.

You see the things is you are capable of accomplishing the goals you set based on your identity in Jesus. You are capable of accomplishing the goals that deal with your health or home improvement.

Your failure isn’t becuase the goal is too big, it’s because you are trying to accomplish a task rather than have your life transformed into who God made you to be.

When there is a vision of who you are becoming, then you can put a plan in place to become that person.

Until you live from your identity in Jesus though, you will be living for an identity you are giving yourself. Or worse, you are living with an identity someone else gave you.

Solution-Find Identity in Jesus and live from it

The first step to living from your identity in Jesus is discovering who you are in Christ.

That can be done on your own through bible reading, prayer, and I believe writing things down in reflection as well as making the statement of who you are.

However you don’t have to do this alone. You shouldn’t do this alone.

Guide- Jesus, His Word, and a fellow believer

You know you have Jesus with you. You know you have His Word but I think you forget there are people around you that can help.

There are people in your life that cna help. It’s great to get conected to them. You have help in me, our staff, our deacons, life group leaders, and even people that aren’t in those positions.

Why? Becuase self awareness is often started by others awareness however if we never let others be apart of the process. Yet that is the exact model Jesus taught His disciples.

He brought them into the process. Then told them to go out and brign others into their process. And Paul planted churches that did the same thing.

How many of you like hiking?

My wife loves hiking, it’s not my favorite thing. But I have come to appreciate the views that you can get when you go hiking.

I mean look at these

A beautiful waterfall in Utah, kenan falls and then here in Colorado, Lake Hayaiah..reminds me of the movie heavyweights from the 90’s…Remmeber? give me a hi, hia, hiya

Anyways, you have to hike to get to these spots. Now, could I set off on my own with a map and compass and find these places? Probably.

Would they be easier to find if I had someone with me that had done it before? Absolutely.

So is your identity, so is your walk with Jesus, so are the goals that you have set before you.

How do you get conneceted with someone like that? First, ask. Second, join a life group, sign ups are in the back. Ultimately you have to intentionally seek it out.

A great quote I heard years ago is this “You are as close to God as you want to be.” How close do you want to be?

Are you willing to let someone else speak into your life so that you can live from the identity Jesus gave you and accomplish your goals?

Journey-Romans

What’s this journey look like?

Well it looks a lot like Pauls life.

Romans 7:15 “15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.”

Romans 7:15 CSB

15 For I do not understand what I am doing, because I do not practice what I want to do, but I do what I hate.

NLT reads I do not understand myself

Romans 7:18–19 “18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.”

Romans 7:18–19 CSB

18 For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do what is good is with me, but there is no ability to do it. 19 For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do.

Romans 7:24–25 “24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.”

Romans 7:24–25 CSB

24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I myself am serving the law of God, but with my flesh, the law of sin.

Paul struggled with his identity and doing the right thing. He knew that to accomplsih what He had sat out to do, he would need to remember who he was in Jesus.

Knowing who we are in Christ is the beginning but then comes the next part, how.

You will fail at accomplishing your goals in life if you do not know who you are.

The second reason you will fail is becuase you are focused on what needs to be done but now how it can be done.

Most of us have the same or similiar goals. Better health via weight loss or stopping bad habits. Make, invest, save X amount of money, Grow closer to God, Enjoy life, Improve relationship, etc.

What’s the difference between those that make them happen and those that don’t?

Have you ever started a season with a sports team and heard a coach say “We are shooting for 5ht place this year!” “Guys I believe in each of you and know tha you can make a solid run at 3rd.”

Every football team, even the browns, the panthers, my broncos, and this new version of the patriots that I love so much, started the season by saying “We are going to the super bowl”

But obnly two teams make it.

Every marriage starts out with eternity in midn, or at least should. You don’t hear of people getting married and saying “yea I really hope this last 7 but I’ll be happy with 5 years.”

They are beginning with the end in mind and the end is the long haul.

So the goals must not determine the outcome, right? Then what does?

Systems. Systems determines your outcome.

Daniel had a system of prayer. He stood out from the rest because of his system and When he went into the lions den I don’t believe his system changed.

James Clear said “You don’t rise to the level of our goals, you fail to the level of your systems.”

Too often we are trying to change the end result without changing the system that is getting us there.

Some of you may know that I have a sweet tooth. banana pudding, Reese’s, gummies, the good stuff.

If I were trying to lose 10 lbs I would have to change the system I have in place to provide nutrients to my body.

I couldn’t smash a bag of chocolate during staff meeting and before bed at night, then get upset when I don’t lose weight.

I can’t decide to grow closer to Jesus and continue to not spend time with Him. Then get upset when my faith has not increased or my love for Him either.

When we know who God has called us to be, we can then determine what is preventing us from getting there and change how we progress forward.

When we fix what we are doing the outcome fixes itself.

The other reason you will fail at your goals or new years resolutions is that you don’t see any progress as fast as you want.

Did you know that until I started working with a nutrition coach, I thought weight loss and weight lifting worked like a straight line on a graph?

I eat less food and do more exercise every week and my weight should change right?

Wrong.

My coach taught me that I really needed to eat more food, times properly and the right foods. 6 days a week I had 5 meals a day. Breakfast, a shake, lunch, nuts and an apple or peanut butter, and then dinner, and sometimes a snack after dinner.

First week I felt like I was gourging myself…second week, I was starving every couple hours. I was working out while eating this.

And the scale didn’t even move.

It move 2lbs up or down over the course of a month.

And let me tell you after puutting the work in I was getting frustrated.

Maybe you’ve walked three miles on a treadmill, hopped off and checked the scale and somehow while you were exercising you gained 2 lbs.

Or maybe you’ve committed to reading the bible every day… but you still yelled at your kids on the way to church

What’s this lead to? It leads to the thought that small good decisions don’t amount to much.

Then you have the other side of thje coin where you will do wrong things that don’t have a major impact.

Like play video games for three hours while your kids are outside playing and they don’t hate you adn your wife doesn’t leave you.

You decide you don’t need to go to church one weekend, you can just watch online and nohting really happens that day

You can eat that half box of chocolates and then not gain wieght that week…

Now you think that small bad decisions don’t really have an impact either.

John Maxwell said “Life is a matter of choices. Each choice you make makes you.”

The little choices you make every day are growing you into the type of person that makes those choices. Are your daily choices reflecting the type of person God has called you to be?

Whether good or bad choices, it takes time and consistency for you to really feel their impact.

It’s like a pot of water. It takes time for the temperature to rise to boiling and once it’s there…POOF overnight success…

Those in your life that you look up to didn’t become who they are becuase one night they said…tomorrow I’ll be successful. It takes years to become an overnight success.

We often over estimate what we can do in a year and underestimate what can be done in 10 years.

What you don’t see those people doing

overcoming self-doubt—Failing, starting again—Praying—Sacrifices Enduring criticism—Early mornings—Late nights. Grind— Persistence—Private price—Small consistent disciplines

it’s the things you do that no one sees that brings the results everyone wants.

I believe that’s why Paul wrote

Galatians 6:9 “9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

Doing well can cause weariness. Serving and loving people can be wearisome becuase they can’t awlays give back.

Spending time with Jesus can get wearisome if you have expectations of a result that isn’t coming immediately.

You can begin to feel like a failure…until you realize that God has used percieved failures throughout time to accomplish His will.

Moses said he wasn’t a good speaker, lead thousands of Israelites

Gideon was weak and a coward, defeated an enemy army with 300 men

Paul was the chief of sinners, planted churches across Europe

When you find your identity inside of those faults, you are going to live from those faults.

Remember my illustration from earlier about telling someone “No I’m trying to quit” when they invite you?

What your doing there is choosing to identify as a smoker who is trying to quit…rather than “I’m sorry I’m not a smoker.” Notice the difference. Who you are determines waht you will do and then what you do determines who you will become.

And you can do this with anything. I’m not a good teacher so I won’t volunteer to help. I’m a shopaholic, therefore I can’t save money.

I’m adisorganized so I can’t keep a schedule. I’m not good with people so I won’t talk to them.

Notice the identity is shaping the action.

When you have a poor identity, you have poor habits.

When you have poor habits you have a poor identity.

Instead of asking ourselves what we are trying to accomplish with our goals, I encourage you to ask who re you trying to become. Then determine waht actions need to be taken for you to become that.

Resolution- Seek to become who go made you to be not do what you want to do

If you only set goals based on what you want to do and not who you want to become, you’ll never be more than you are.

When you decide to be who He made you to be and live from that identity, you’ll find yourself doing the things that He would have you to do.

I want to encourage you not to start with Do goals…start with a who goal and then decide what you need to do in order to get there…

Impact-Negative:life as is, frustrated, failing. Positive: Freedom, faith filled living, joy.

If you choose to follow the path you always ahve and do what everyone else does you will never be who jesus made you to be, because then you will be just like everyone else.

When you set your goals based on what you want to do and determine your identity based off of your ability to accomplish them you will be in a viscious cycle of failure and giving up. You will have a diminishjed value of yourself because all that you are is based on you.

When you choose to live from the identity Jesus gave you, you will then be able to find freedom in doing things differently from others. Because you are not doing it for them or because you want to impress them, you are doing them from your identity in Jesus and who He made you to be.

You find grace and mercy knowing that you will fail along the way but He is there to pick you up.

Don’t stay who you are and don’t try to do things to become someone else. Discover who you are in Christ and then seek to do what that person does.

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