Identity

"He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on Him. And there came a voice from heaven: This is My beloved Son. I take delight in Him! [...] Then the tempter approached Him and said, 'If You are the Son of God...'" Matthew 3:16-17, 4:3

Who am I? What are we doing here? Am I even doing this right? I think these are the questions that swirl around in our heads when we finally take a moment to be still. That moment when your head is on the pillow but you're just laying there. All the questions you've pushed to the back of your mind start to resurface. It's like the pillow is pushing them up as they rise to the surface and can no longer be ignored.

Lately I've been in that Matthew passage because we're in a season of Lent and talking about the desert. But what I got out of it, more so than the powerful refining process of the desert, was the subject of identity. I think both God and Satan are very intentional in their words and their timing. God affirms His Son and announces His identity to the world in that moment. Not only does He affirm this identity, but He reminds Jesus that He takes delight in Him. This is a pivotal moment not only in the messianic narrative, but in our own narratives as well.

And Satan has 40 days to craft a plan. It is no coincidence that the first thing Satan does is question Jesus' identity. "If you really are the Son of God..." It is a direct assault on everything The Lord has so purposefully affirmed. These are the questions that arise when we start to doubt what we've heard only 40 days before. Did God really say that? Am I good enough? What if I made the wrong decision? And thus the foundation of our confidence in the One who affirmed us begins to crumble. It is not the first time Satan has pulled this stunt. We've seen the first time he targets confidence. In the garden God says not to eat the tree and Satan swoops in right behind Him to say "Did God really say that?" Thus we see the fall of man. Identity is questioned and Eve responds with her interpretation of God's command. Jesus withstands the assault on His identity by being confident in the Word.

You have been called to a specific purpose and The Lord has affirmed that in you. You are being affirmed same way that Jesus was in His ministry. Maybe ministry looks like hanging out with high school kids in the lunch room. Maybe its your high school soccer team. Maybe its loving on leaders or organizing camp trips. No matter what, rest assured that your identity is in Christ. He has called you and affirmed you in ministry that glorifies Him. Listen to His voice as He whispers these things to you. Ingrain the Word on your heart to stand strong against Satan's identity attack. You really are the child of God. There are no if's about it.

An Unconventional God

There's always that one kid. You know the one. The one that makes the trips to awkward lunches and getting stood up worth it all. The kid who reminds you why you do this, why you take the time and why God put the beat in your heart that whispers "tell the kids about Me". I've got that kid and I would like to tell you a little story if you'll be gracious enough to stick with me.

I only knew two kids at the high school I led at that first day. They had come to lacrosse practice the semester before when I volunteer coached and I remember thinking "I'm gonna be friends with those girls." I would talk to them at lunches and one of the girls just seemed so sad. I would leave the school a little down because this girl Karley didn't have a twinkle in her eye. Later in the semester I got the privilege of taking Karley and her friends to Sharptop Cover for fall camp. It was awesome and I knew I loved those girls. There was still something about Karley. Turns out her friend told me later that she didn't know Jesus but was interested in and curious. Curious was an understatement. Taking her home from club was my new mission, and we would sit in the driveway for hours Bible in hand. She fired questions left and right about the bigger mysteries in the world, boys, Jesus, and the whole nine yards. My Young Life team watched me cry at team meetings and I would pray so hard that she could meet Jesus. I had to get this girl to camp. Surely a week at the feet of her Savior would be the answer to these million questions. But how were we going to get the money?

When I left for Christmas break my life was relatively normal. I went home to celebrate the holidays and suddenly, out of the blue, my life was turned upside down. My dad had a seizure. I cried and pleaded with a God I presumed had shut the door in my face. My prayers fell down empty handed and on December 23rd heaven, for me, went silent. He just died and I was furious. This wasn't in the plan. How could such a mighty God refuse my cries for help?

But that's not the end of the story. It never is. Instead of sending flowers we had people donate to my Young Life area. Turns out a nice little fund piled up and I got word that I could use that money to take my girls to camp. Karley was going to Frontier Ranch with her friends to see all the glory that God could put on display for a week. It truly was the best week of our lives. Long story short Karley met her Savior on the side of that big beautiful mountain. We went on a walk and all I said was "are you in?" and she nodded her head and said "all those questions don't matter anymore."

Karley loves Jesus now and I have seen the Gospel on display. You see, we serve an unconventional God. It wasn't that my prayers fell on deaf ears; it that they had already been answered. The nights spent begging for Karley to meet Christ were in the works December 23rd. Jesus died so that we could spend forever with Him. My dad died and now Karley gets a forever too. God is unconventional enough and big enough to use whatever it takes to get our high school friends to meet Him. Don't count Him out.

It reminds me of my favorite C.S. Lewis quote: "Safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King I tell you"

Stepping Towards Jesus

"For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said: You will be delivered by returning and resting; your strength will lie in quiet confidence...Therefore the Lord is waiting to show you mercy, and is rising up to show you compassion, for the Lord is a just God. All who wait patiently for Him are happy" Isaiah 30:15, 18

 

I'm a little nervous to be writing the very first Total YL Move blog post. But everything starts somewhere I suppose. Before break our team and really our whole area was dwelling on this passage from Isaiah. It's a sneaky little passage that sticks with you just the way it should. Young Life across the country will swing into full gear soon as a much anticipated semester of club, campaigners, and events hangs just around the corner. It's easy to get swept up into the excitement and I can still hear the phrase "new year, new you" clamouring around in my head. Time to do things bigger and better (Young Life reference intended). But according to Jesus, that is not the case.

 

Our entire deliverance hinges upon returning and resting. I'm sorry what? You want me to rest? There are clubs to plan Lord! There is coffee to be consumed, journals to be written, and enos to be slung. But just in line with the nature of the God of the univese, he does things contrary to popular belief. He wants us to rest in him, to be still and just know that he is God. He's waiting on us and building up all this compassion that he is ready to pour out on us but it is contingent upon our rest.

 

So hopefully you got some rest this break. Maybe you hung around in your pajamas until unreasonable  hours. Maybe you caught up on some reading, had a few good laughs with some friends. And hopefully you experienced true rest, rest in the Lord. Going into another semester let's hold onto that rest despite the craziness that ensues. May we return to him over and over again to experience deliverance and salvation in the midst of our busy lives. Let's not set our sights so far forward that we forget to turn back to our First Love. According to Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia, sometimes the best thing you can do is "turn around and take a step forward".

 

He makes our pullovers, so maybe this guy is onto something. Maybe its time to turn around and take a step towards returning to Jesus.