Devos

Romans 8:38-39

“I'm absolutely convinced that nothing-nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable-absolutely nothing can get between us and God's love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us.”

I want you to think about a few questions:Who are you? What defines you? How do you describe yourself? Who do others know you as? Now keep those thoughts on the back burner. You’ll see where I’m going in a second. This morning I was working through a devo that I wish I did on a daily basis. It suggested a prayer: I have stopped from the chaos of my life, God. I have stopped so that I may hear your word. Take away the distractions, God - my responsibilities, the stress that I place on myself, and the pressures that threaten to overwhelm. Help me to focus on your word and, in listening, find what I need to grow in faith, hope and love. Amen The part that caught me: “Take away the distractions, God – my responsibilities.” What?!? Something inside me said, “Wait… stop right there… I can’t give up my responsibilities. That wouldn’t be…responsible.” And then it hit me that I’m way too tied to my responsibilities. I’m a youth director for middle school and senior high students at a church… I’ve got more responsibilities than I can actually take care of. Go ahead, ask your youth director if they walk into work each day thinking, “Golly-jeepers, I can’t wait for people to add more responsibilities and expectations to my job. That would be swell!” …yeah, I don’t think they’ll say that. But as much as I like to joke and whine about responsibilities, it’s kinda like they’re my own security blanket. I mean, part of me thinks, “I know I’m important because people are counting on me.” And that’s such the WRONG idea. Who am I? I’m a youth director.What defines me? My responsibilities.How do I describe myself? Overloaded.Who do others know me as? A youth director. Busy and glued to my laptop, probably. Is something wrong there? I think so. Maybe this is more accurate: Who am I? A child of God.What defines me? My relationship with my Creator.How do I describe myself? Someone who loves his God and loves his neighbor.Who do others know me as? Husband, friend, listener, giver. Do you see a difference? The answers I just gave are the types of things that can apply to all of us (well, maybe not “husband”, but you get the idea.). What defines you is NOT that you’re a soccer star, or a rebel, or a straight-A student, or a skatepark master, or a _________. Because those all come with responsibilities and expectations that stress us when we don’t live up to them. But what about placing your identity first and foremost in being a child of God? What if God defines us simply as his children? And what if we lived like that? Think about it. Because that’s a powerful identity. Go into your world as a child of God, and chew on Romans 8:38 & 39…

Russell Duren
January 2008

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