July 1 “There is no heaven that has a little corner of hell in it.” Chambers.

These next posts will aim for my utmost in a devotional time with the Great God and Father. Oswald and Biddy Chambers will be in on the journey.

God is committed to making me pure, holy, fully His; I, on the other hand have a knack for sullying my words, my attitude, and yes, my mind. My work is to participate with the Holy Spirit who convicts me of wrong, empowers me to overcome by emptying my life of my own goodness and effort, and embraces me in the journey. Give in to His nudge toward right today; it matters. 

I spend more time chasing and affirming (and asking others to affirm) the identity and calling I want. Maybe this week, I will ask God to let me be identified as His, for Him, and all about Him. Let me align my calling and my identity with what Jesus sees in me – Himself living through me, and me living in Him.

My friend Chip Holt taught at North Beach Vineyard this Sunday about our identity aligning with what God says and wants. He used words that resonate today: our identity needs to be compatible with our Creator and Boss. We’ve all tried to plug in the wrong adapter to the wrong device; we have had apps and software that weren’t compatible with our OS. 

God’s calling and how we identify compatibly are vastly diverse. If I’m stuck on an elevator with someone, I give him the big one: a husband who loves his wife, a father with three kids who’s proud of each, a teacher at the university level, a writer, and on and on. But if I don’t really do these things my identity has compatibility issues. Or if I identify as a Christian as well as a scammer or embezzler, everyone gets it – that’s incompatible.

Ask today, am I pushing my identity on God or am I running after what He says I am?

“May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation – the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ – for this will bring much glory and praise to God.” Philippians 1:11 (NLT)