Agree with God - You are Amazing and of Great Worth!

Did you grow up in a home where perfectionism was valued? Do you sometimes boast to others that you are "driven." 
What happens when perfectionism is not met? What happens if you do not do everything right the way you "should." 
You fail.
This is a black and white philosophy or a  Pass/Fail Mindset. 
But, what does God think about all of this? Is he upset with you or angry if you make a mistake?
No! Actually God has never had a bad thought about you.
God want you to love yourself aggressively the way he does. Did you know that he really loves you with an everlasting love? (Jeremiah 31:3)
I was stuck for a long time in the Pass/Fail Mindset. I would get upset with myself every time I failed - which was all the time, because I was rarely able to do everything perfect. All of this negativity weighed me down and kept me from agreeing with who God says I am 
One of my favorite quotes of Ric Lumbard is "Minimum: Agree with what God says about you; Maximum: Feel what He feels about you."
I decided to believe that he had never had a bad thought about me and to agree and feel what he feels about me. 
This type of agreement leads to a powerful stance of understanding who I am in God. I am able to love others powerfully because of agreement with God's powerful love. I become a conduit for his love and I breathe out his love over all I encounter.
Could you step away from perfectionism? Can you relinquish control of your circumstances to God's powerful hands? Can you agree with the fact that you are truly amazing and absolutely precious to God? 
If this is a new concept to you, consider writing some of these ideas on post-its around your house. Or put a reminder on your phone to buzz and tell you something powerful like "God has never had a bad thought about me."
Old mindsets can be changed, but it takes determination, agreement with God, and renewing of the mind.
#changeyourmindsets #loveyourselfpowerfully #agreewithgod

Don't Let Your Do Define Your Who

What is the lens you see life through? Have you ever had anxiety or felt depressed? Life through this type of lens affects everything. If someone at work says hello, the anxiety lens might overanalyze the body language/tone of voice reading into the action something that was never there. Whereas, when one is chronically depressed if someone makes a positive comment, through the lens of depression one might doubt the sincerity of the compliment or even negate the words by saying something like, "Well, you have never seen me when I wake up in the morning."

This filter also directly affects what you think God thinks about you. Is your relationship with the father are you bound by this lens or are you free to run and able to truly hear/believe what He says about you?

In addition, society tells us success is based in performance -- that your worth is seen by what you do. But, don't let your do define your who.

The truth is what we do doesn’t affect the fact that we are God’s children and that He absolutely loves us with an everlasting love. The father is your biggest fan no matter your works.

So, take a minute and ask God if you are looking at Him through some sort of lens. He sees you-- it's about time you really see Him and understand how deep his love is for you!

Who Am I?

If you grew up attending public schools, you probably made one of those "Who Am I" or "I am Special" poster boards for a class project. Remember the parts of the poster that were supposed to demonstrate your worth? (Your likes, dislikes, talents, how many brothers or sisters you had, what you wanted to be when you grew up, etc).

With this philosophy, we are brought up to believe our worth is defined by what we do or what we like. It is no wonder that our self perception is so distorted by the time we get older.
I found that my primary identity came from what I did for a living. When people would ask me how I was doing, I would think about how my job or personal accomplishments in my life. It is interesting to look at that. Isn't the question, how are YOU? Not, what have you accomplished recently; how successful are you in your work or relationships; etc. If we are really engaging in meaningful relationships we should really want to know HOW the person is doing, not WHAT they are doing.

I learned recently that God is not focused on WHAT I DO, but WHO I AM.

God does not determine a person's value by looking at what they have done in life or by his/her good works.

Did you know that you are actually God's treasure? We are His treasured possession! (Exodus 19:5, Deuteronomy 7:6, Deuteronomy 14:2, Deuteronomy 26:18)

Walk in freedom - stop identifying yourself by what you do. Start embracing who God says you are. Start now. Watch this video from Casting Crowns.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In this blog I have used material I learned at Wind and Fire Mission Base.

 Wind and Fire Mission Base, 3243 Wind and Fire Dr. Marion, IA 5230230