We live in a society where identity is often synonymous with what we do. Who we are doesn’t always seem as important to other people as what we do. When we’re younger, it’s difficult for us to know who we are, for we are discovering ourselves as we grow up and we can be easily influenced by other people. For me, it has taken a long time to learn that our identity in God matters far more than anything else in life other than God Himself and that our identity in Him is the thing that defines us.

I made a notice to go on the wall where I worked for years which read ‘We are children of God. Who we are is more important than what we do.’

If, like me, you were somehow imbued with the Protestant work ethic when young (even though I didn’t know what the term meant and I wasn’t a Christian then!), it can be hard to relax and just be. I always measured who I was in terms of what I did. I felt I had to strive to earn people’s affection and love and no matter what I did, somehow it just wasn’t good enough. I transferred those feelings easily onto God, so that it was hard for me to accept God’s unconditional love. My identity was almost always identified with activity, with doing, with striving. I have a perfectionist streak in me which meant I soon came to realise I was never satisfied with what I was doing (I could always do better) and, if I were honest, I wasn’t satisfied with who I was either. That makes for pretty miserable living.

There’s nothing wrong with activity in itself and nothing wrong with striving to improve. The difficulty comes if our identity becomes so wrapped up in it that we cannot accept ourselves as we are and cannot believe that God accepts us and loves us with no strings attached and with an unconditional love that is not dependent on us. Learning to be secure in who we are in God – children of the King, sons and daughters of the living God, a bride that is cherished and loved by her bridegroom husband (Isaiah 62:3-5 TNIV is one of my favourite passages and if I had to say what my favourite symbolic name in the Bible was, it would indeed be Hephzibah!) Only when we truly know that our identity is secure in God and that this is more important than any other thing we do in life, that this is the thing which will identify us throughout eternity, can we be really free.

“I’ve been looking from the outside, outside
I’ve been walking on a straight line, straight line
Scared to let the world see my failures, who I am, or who I’ve been.

I want to see the world change, see the system cave in
You pull our hearts from the ashes
The cry of the captive is rising.” (‘Identity’, Kutless)
’Identity’, Kutless

Kevin’s recent sermon Give Praise To God has really stirred my heart. I’ve always enjoyed praising God and have long since realised that this is something that is necessary at all times, on the road marked with suffering, to quote Matt Redman, as well as when the world’s all as it should be (‘Blessed Be Your Name’). So when I played the first song on his new album, I had to smile. The song is called ‘Sing and Shout’ and it felt like it could have been the sermon illustration for Kevin! When we look at the cross and realise God’s mercy and grace to us, it makes our spirits sing and we want to sing and shout! He has done so much for us that we can’t stay silent!

“Your cross, Your cross
It draws me to Your heart
It makes my spirit sing,
It makes my spirit sing

What could be better than a grace
that washes all our shame away?
What could be better than
Your great Love?
What could be better than a grace
that leads us home and makes a way?
What could be better than
Your great Love?” (‘Sing And Shout’, Matt Redman, Willie Weeks, Jorge Mhondera)
‘Sing and Shout’, Matt Redman

The first gold nugget of truth I have discovered in thirty years of being a child of God is that ‘God is enough’. I’ve spent a lot of time pondering the ‘God is…’ and the ‘I am…’ statements and I can fill in the list with all kinds of truths I’ve discovered:
• God is love
• God is kind
• God is faithful
• God is trustworthy
• God is just
• God is holy

The list goes on and on, for there’s no end to the things I’m discovering about God. But perhaps the most important thing I’ve uncovered is that there is ‘one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all’ (Eph 4:6 TNIV) and that His grace is sufficient for us (2 Cor 12:9 TNIV). God is enough for us, for every situation, for everyday living, for the crisis times and the ordinary times. We may think we need lots of other things as we journey through life, but actually, if we have God, we can get by. He is our bare minimum, but in that lovely paradoxical way He has (more of that later!), He is an abundant supply, more than enough, more than sufficient.

‘All of You is more than enough for
All of me, for every thirst and every need
You satisfy me with Your love
And all I have in You is more than enough.’ (‘Enough’, Chris Tomlin & Louie Giglio)
‘Enough’, Chris Tomlin & Louie Giglio

“We bow our hearts, we lift our hands
We turn our eyes to you again
And we surrender to the truth
That all we need is found in You.” (‘Adoration’, Brenton Brown, written when he and his wife discovered at nine months that their daughter, Grace, had died in the womb and his wife was left to deliver her naturally)
’Adoration’, Brenton Brown

‘I find everything I need in You.
Only You can satisfy.’ (‘Satisfy’, Aaron Shust)
‘Satisfy’, Aaron Shust

The prayer topic for October is unity of believers.

Jesus said, “I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one – I in them and you in me – so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” (John 17:22-23 TNIV)

• Pray that we will be in unity of praise and vision as we continue to serve God this year and next.

• Pray that God will give the leadership clear direction and anointing, and that they will continue in unity.

• Pray that churches in our area and throughout the U.K. will learn to serve and work with each other

• Thank God for the unity we enjoy already with the churches we work with to achieve God’s plans and pray that these relationships will be deepened and strengthened.

• Pray that at Christmas people will be drawn to church as they see that the churches can work together.

• Pray for the worship team as they lead us, that they will be in unity and be led by the Holy Spirit

God promises to command His blessing where His people dwell in unity (Psalm 133:1-3 TNIV). Let’s seek Him for unity, striving to work together and making every effort to keep the unity of the Holy Spirit through the bond of peace. (Eph 4:3 TNIV)

Throughout October, I will be blogging a ‘gold nugget of truth’ each day, for this is the month when I celebrate my 30th birthday. I won’t be standing on the birthday box at church, but it’s 30 years this month since I first gave my life to Christ and in thirty years, it’s to be hoped I’ve learned a few things I can pass on to others! There would be something very sad and immature about life if we didn’t grow up, and just as we want our children to grow into mature adults, so God wants His children to develop and mature into the likeness of His Son, Jesus.

I’m not claiming to know it all – no one could do that and I’m far from any sense of feeling ‘I’ve arrived!’ Even Paul said ‘Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal…’ (Phil 3:12 TNIV), and I don’t think I’m anywhere near knowing as much as Paul did! But I do think that it is important that each one of us pass on to others the truths God has revealed to us. There is simply no point ‘re-inventing the wheel’, as the saying goes, and if we can help others along life’s journeys through the things God has taught us, then I believe we can sometimes help people to avoid the pitfalls and perils we’ve maybe fallen into. Paul urged the Thessalonians to ‘stand firm and hold fast to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.‘ (2 Thess 2:15 TNIV)

I’d be interested to know if the thirty nuggets of gold I’m about to share are similar to the things you’ve learned or if you have experienced different lessons along this journey. Do feel free to comment and share your nuggets too! The amazing thing about the Christian journey is that God is teaching us all and there is great unity through diversity in His master plan!

To close the evening service, we sang the song ‘White Flag’. The title and the theme of the song is obvious: surrender. The symbolism of this surrender is waving a white flag. In military terms, the white flag is an internationally recognised protective sign of truce or ceasefire, and a request for negotiation. It is also used to symbolise surrender, since it is often the weaker military party which requests negotiation. A white flag signifies to all that an approaching negotiator is unarmed, with an intent to surrender or a desire to communicate. Persons carrying or waving a white flag are not to be fired upon, nor are they allowed to open fire.

The story behind the song can be viewed here.

When we surrender to God, the defeat which we think is inevitable is actually magnificent, because through it we find a new way illuminated: the path to freedom. Surrender brings us into the place of freedom and victory. The enemy tells us that surrender is not the way forward, but I am convinced that our surrender to God, rather than to ourselves or to the enemy, is the key to breaking free from every chain which would bind us and to living in freedom. As we lift the cross high and take up our cross daily and follow Christ, we find the truth sets us free.