“Know who you are and whose you are.”
For many people, thinking about their family history is a painful or frustrating process. Brokenness is more prevalent than ever within our families. My first thought is that broken marriages affect generations of lives.
When people make decisions to end relationships for selfish reasons, it effects the identity of generations to come. When a son sees his dad cheat on his mom, the identity of what it means to be a man in his family is drastically changed. When a daughter sees her mother belittle her father for decisions he makes, the identity of what it means to be a woman in her family is negatively impacted.
My second thought is that a rich family heritage is worth it’s weight in vision and self-worth. One of my favorite all time verses in the Bible regarding faithfulness is Exodus 20:4-6.
4“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. 5You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. 6But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on thoseb who love me and obey my commands.
Thousands of generations! Putting God first makes all the difference within our lives and the lives of our families. I am so thankful that my parents and grandparents have strived to put God first. They have faithfully served as youth leaders, worship leaders, nursery helpers, and many other roles within churches. Outside of the church they have given countless hours and dollars to help others all for the sake of Christ.
This picture I purposefully had taken as soon as I found out that I was hired on full time at gracespring. This picture is of myself, my dad, and my two grandfathers. It represents three generations of men who have been youth group leaders (I think I’m the first one to get paid to do it...Praise God!). What an incredible and humbling heritage I am blessed with.
My third and final thought is that our identity effects every area of our lives. If I place my identity in my gifts and talents, then my strengths and insecurities will all stem from that. If I place my identity solely in my personality, than I will always strive to fulfill my basic fear of wanting to be loved and wanted. If I place my identity in what I believe my family or friends think I am, then I will shift with the wind and never be content or good enough. But, if my identity lies within something that is always true and loving, then I can allow that to permeate the very core of my being. If I can let go of my failures. If I can let go of the expectations others force me to live up to. If I can stop putting all this pressure on myself to be something that I’m not, then I can be what I was made to be. Because I was made by Him who is always true and loving.
For many people, thinking about their family history is a painful or frustrating process. Brokenness is more prevalent than ever within our families. My first thought is that broken marriages affect generations of lives.
When people make decisions to end relationships for selfish reasons, it effects the identity of generations to come. When a son sees his dad cheat on his mom, the identity of what it means to be a man in his family is drastically changed. When a daughter sees her mother belittle her father for decisions he makes, the identity of what it means to be a woman in her family is negatively impacted.
My second thought is that a rich family heritage is worth it’s weight in vision and self-worth. One of my favorite all time verses in the Bible regarding faithfulness is Exodus 20:4-6.
4“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. 5You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. 6But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on thoseb who love me and obey my commands.
Thousands of generations! Putting God first makes all the difference within our lives and the lives of our families. I am so thankful that my parents and grandparents have strived to put God first. They have faithfully served as youth leaders, worship leaders, nursery helpers, and many other roles within churches. Outside of the church they have given countless hours and dollars to help others all for the sake of Christ.
This picture I purposefully had taken as soon as I found out that I was hired on full time at gracespring. This picture is of myself, my dad, and my two grandfathers. It represents three generations of men who have been youth group leaders (I think I’m the first one to get paid to do it...Praise God!). What an incredible and humbling heritage I am blessed with.
My third and final thought is that our identity effects every area of our lives. If I place my identity in my gifts and talents, then my strengths and insecurities will all stem from that. If I place my identity solely in my personality, than I will always strive to fulfill my basic fear of wanting to be loved and wanted. If I place my identity in what I believe my family or friends think I am, then I will shift with the wind and never be content or good enough. But, if my identity lies within something that is always true and loving, then I can allow that to permeate the very core of my being. If I can let go of my failures. If I can let go of the expectations others force me to live up to. If I can stop putting all this pressure on myself to be something that I’m not, then I can be what I was made to be. Because I was made by Him who is always true and loving.
Peter, we are so blessed that God is using you to impact our kids' lives. THANK YOU for knowing that your identity is in HIM! :) Julie T
ReplyDeleteI needed to hear this this week. Thanks for letting God speak through you.
ReplyDeletePretty cool to think about building up blessings for generations we may never meet.
ReplyDelete