Stomping Out the Darkness: Discover Your True Identity in Christ and Stop Putting Up with the World’s Garbage

8

GOD’S GUIDELINES FOR THE
WALK OF FAITH

Along your own walk of faith, you’ll see—as I (Dave) have—that God uses bad things to produce good results. Yes, it’s hard for me to see Davers hurt, but I truly rejoice when I see the Christlike heart of compassion in my little boy.

· When have you seen God use something bad—in your life or in someone else’s—to produce good results?

God cries with us when the bad things happen, but He also works to redeem them and make good come from them (see Romans 8:28). If we don’t believe in this truth and in God’s fundamental goodness, we can become bitter and unhappy. And the devil is more than willing to confuse our beliefs so that we’ll grow distant from God. Let’s take a look at the beliefs that keep us close to Him.

PROPER BELIEFS LEAD TO A PROPER WALK

If Satan can muddy our minds and weaken our faith with partial truths, he can stop our effectiveness for God and stunt our growth as Christians. So let’s look closely at what the Bible teaches about success, significance, fulfillment, satisfaction, happiness, fun, security and peace. Our beliefs about these things need to be anchored in the Scriptures if we are to walk with Jesus.

Success Comes from Right Goals. If you ranked yourself low in the success category of the Belief Quiz, you are probably having difficulty reaching your goals in life. And if you aren’t reaching your goals, it’s probably because you’re working on the wrong goals.

· According to 2 Peter 1:5-7, what are seven goals for those of us who call ourselves “Christians”?

· What are the odds for reaching these goals—for achieving moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and Christian love? Explain why you answered the way you did.

Focusing on God’s goals will lead to success in God’s terms. As these qualities increase in our lives, we will be useful and fruitful— and that’s success!

· Notice what is not mentioned in Peter’s discussion of success. No word is said about talents, intelligence or gifts that are not equally distributed to all believers. Why is this significant? Why is this encouraging?

Your self-worth is not determined by your talents, your intelligence or your gifts. Your self-worth is based on your identity in Christ and your growth in character, both of which are equally available to every Christian.

· What did you learn from Joshua about success in God’s terms?

For Joshua, success hinged entirely on obedience to God—and that should be our pattern, too. When we accept God’s goal for our lives and pursue it obediently, we’ll become the people God wants us to be—and that’s big-time success!

Significance Comes from Proper Use of Time. Significance is a time issue. What is forgotten as time passes is of little importance. What is remembered for eternity is of great importance (see 1 Corinthians 3:14; 1 Timothy 4:7-8).

· Consider a typical week. What activities are you involved in that will remain for eternity?

· What percentage of your time and energy go to those activities of eternal significance that you just listed?

· Read the story Jesus tells in Matthew 25:31-40. What does this parable teach about which activities are significant?

What we do and say for Christ, no matter how unimportant it seems in this world, will last forever. We have His word on that!

Fulfillment Comes from Serving Others. For the Christian, true fulfillment in life comes when we discover our unique gifts and abilities and use them to serve others and glorify the Lord (see 1 Peter 4:10).

· How can you serve God in your family—in your role as son or daughter, brother or sister? Be specific! And let the lesson of Matthew 25:31-40 cue you!

· How can you serve God at school and with your friends? These are your mission fields, and you are the person God has appointed to serve there.

Sadly, many people miss their calling in life by looking for fulfillment in the world. Find your fulfillment in the kingdom of God by deciding to be an ambassador for Christ in the world (see 2 Corinthians 5:20).

Satisfaction Comes from Living a Quality Life. Satisfaction results from living righteously and seeking to make everything we’re involved in better. Satisfaction comes from doing our best for God, whatever it is we’re doing.

· If you’re not super satisfied with your life right now, take the quality/quantity test. Are you trying to do a few things well, or are you doing a lot of (too many?) things and just trying to hang on?

· Apply the quality/quantity yardstick to relationships, too. Are you investing in a few good friendships, or are you spreading yourself too thin and finding yourself with lots of acquaintances but no solid friend?

· What do your answers to the two preceding questions tell you about yourself?

· What changes in your life do they get you thinking about making?

The key to personal satisfaction is not gaining more responsibilities, but working hard and doing your best in the responsibilities you have. Likewise, personal satisfaction with relationships comes with following Jesus’ example and investing in some close and quality relationships with people who will be there when you need them.

Happiness Comes from Wanting What You Have. The world says that happiness is having what we want, but God says, “Happy is the person who wants what he has.”

· Which definition of happiness—the world’s or God’s— has the greatest influence over you right now?

· What’s resulting from that influence?

· Satan’s lie is that God won’t give you what you need or enough of what you need. What area of your life is Satan lying to you about? Arm yourself against this attack by reading God’s truth in Matthew 6:25-34.

Talk to God about what is blocking your happiness right now. Ask Him to change your focus, your heart and your values so that you can be happy in what He has given you. You have everything you need to make you happy forever: You have Christ, eternal life and the love of a heavenly Father who has promised to supply all your needs. If you really want to be happy, learn to be thankful for these gifts and everything else God has given you, not greedy for what you don’t have.

Fun Comes from Enjoying Life Moment by Moment. Real fun is hanging loose and enjoying life as it happens, and the secret to enjoying life moment by moment is removing the roadblocks.

· Probably the biggest roadblock to Christian fun is our tendency to keep up appearances. Satan wants us to fear what people say and think about us. When has this roadblock been real for you?

· When have you, like King David, wanted to let loose and have fun but, unlike David, listened to the party poopers in your life and held back?

· Think about the last time you had fun. Was it a big, carefully planned event or a spur-of-the-moment activity? Why was it fun?

· Were you afraid of what people would think about you if you let yourself have fun? Why or why not?

· What else, if anything, keeps you from having fun? Let God know about these roadblocks to enjoying the gift of life and ask Him to show you how to avoid them and start having more fun.

Fear of what people think moves us to become people-pleasers. Be concerned about pleasing God—and let yourself enjoy the gift of life He’s given you!

Security Comes from Focusing on Eternal Values. The key to experiencing security in our lives is to depend on things that will last for eternity, not just for a time.

· What are you depending on? Make a list below and then cross out those things that won’t last forever.

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· What does your list—the way it looks now—tell you about yourself? Where will you start looking—and finding—real security?

· Security comes only from relating to that which is anchored in eternity, and one of those things is God’s love. What does Paul teach about God’s love in Romans 8:35-39?

Nothing—absolutely nothing—can separate us from the love of God! Now that’s security! So the greatest security you can find comes with taking a firm grip on values and relationships that will endure as long as God Himself.

Peace Comes from Quieting the Inner Storm. The key to experiencing peace is the understanding that it is primarily an internal issue. We already have peace with God (see Romans 5:1), but the peace of God is something we need to turn to every day (see John 14:27).

· What does Philippians 4:6-7 teach about the peace God gives?

· When have you experienced a peace that passes understanding while the storms of life raged around you?

· What storms of life are raging around you now?

· What can you do—what will you do—to plug into the peace God offers you?

Nothing will happen to you today that God and you can’t handle. Your daily time of worship, prayer and reading God’s Word will help you find that peace of God you need and want.

START STOMPING!

“Before” and “After.” Have you ever seen those ads for musclebuilding drinks or anti-baldness remedies or fat-reducing concoctions? They often have a “before” and an “after” picture to try to convince you of the product’s effectiveness. Well, come up with your own “before” and “after” poster illustrating the world’s ideas of success, significance, fulfillment, satisfaction, happiness, fun, security and peace versus God’s. Focusing on God’s message like this will help you ignore the loud but wrong message of the world.

Take a Look in the Mirror. No, we don’t mean a glass mirror. We mean the mirror of a friend who knows you well. Get together for a Coke and talk about who you guys are and what gifts God has given each of you. Ask your friend what strengths or talents he or she sees in you—and do the same for your friend. Then brainstorm ways you can use those gifts for God. If you love basketball, can you coach elementary kids at the YMCA after school? If you love kids, can you help out in the three-year-olds’ Sunday School class? If you like to write or draw or do office work, can your church use you? Learn about yourself from a friend who knows you well and let him or her help you discover a new mission field!

It Sounds Corny, But … Count your blessings! Focusing on what we don’t have means unhappiness. So focus right now for a few minutes on what you do have! On a piece of paper, race the clock and see how many blessings you can write down in 60 seconds—and I bet that won’t be enough time! Look back on this list when the Madison Avenue ad makers, the cliques at school, or Satan himself are making you want more than what you have. On your mark! Get set! Go!

It makes a lot of sense, God. If I focus on Your goals for my life, I’ll surely find success—the kind of success You want me to have. Yep, it makes a lot of sense and it sounds simple enough, but I’m not sure how easy it is to live out. Help me, God, to want for myself what You want for me—moral excellence, knowledge, selfcontrol, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and Christian love. And help me to be obedient to You as I work toward these goals. Thanks for these guidelines You give me for walking a life of faith in You and for giving me the power, through Your Spirit, to keep on walking. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Strength Givers

These words are for you and about you! As you read each day’s verse, ask yourself, “How would my life be different if I could live out this truth?”—and ask God to help you do so.

Monday:	1 Thessalonians 1:4
Tuesday:	2 Corinthians 5:14-15
Wednesday:	Jeremiah 29:11
Thursday:	Romans 8:38-39
Friday:	Colossians 2:7