Good Morning Trinity,
I hope you are having a wonderful week. It’s difficult to believe we are in the first week of December and only a few short weeks away from a new year. Remember to give thanks to the Lord for the blessings in your life. As you look back at this year I bet you’ll be able to see His handy work in your life. The following devotion was sent to me this week and I thought I would share it with you. It’s from Charles Stanley and I hope it’ll speak to your heart as it did mine.
God Bless,
Pastor Dave
Discovering Our True Identity
1 Corinthians 1: 1 – 9
Many Christians are experiencing an identity crisis. They know they’re saved, but they don’t really know what to think about themselves. Let’s take a little test. Do you consider yourself a sinner saved by grace or a saint who occasionally sins? Both statements are true, but the first one dwells on your past identity whereas the second focuses on the Lord’s perception of you.
If you are a believer, God’s word says that you are a saint (vs. 2). But too many of us still see ourselves as the same old sinner, who has been forgiven and patched up and yet is basically unchanged inside. But the Lord says anyone in Christ “is a new creature; the old things passed away” (2 Cor. 5: 17). That’s what being born again is all about. We can never go back to the way we were.
The solution to this identity crisis is to change the way we think about ourselves. If we don’t, we’ll rely on how we feel, and Satan will bombard us with reminders of our failures and sins. He wants to keep us focused on being a sinner, because he knows that the recognition of our sainthood will lead us to live like saints. We’ll be motivated and empowered to obey God, and Satan will lose his foothold in our lives.
Jesus didn’t come just to save you from hell; He wants to live His life through you. In Christ, you have a new identity which has replaced your old one. If you will focus on who you are now, your actions will follow, and you will experience to enjoyment of a victorious Christian life.
Announcements:
If you were one of those who chose a name from the Westbrook Manor Angel Tree I would like to thank you and say you are indeed an Angel. We will need to have those gifts brought to the church by next Sunday, December 15th so they can be delivered to Westbrook.
December 15th is Potluck Sunday following the Cantata “That’s the Good News.” We are expecting visitors to enjoy this time with us so if you could please bring over and above what you would normally bring to the potluck it would be very much appreciated. We want to be a good host by not running out of food. Thank you.
If you are interested in working at the Trinity booth this Saturday at the Christmas Light Festival in Zephyrhills please call the office at 813-788-2898. There are two shifts available 2pm – 5:30pm and 5:30pm – 9pm
Sunday – Sunday School at 9am and Worship at 10:15am. Bring a friend, they’ll love you for eternity.
