Category: Beneath The Paint

The sum of my experiences cannot describe me
The offspring of my womb cannot label me
The position I hold for work cannot brand me
The possessions I own cannot explain me

I was born into the viscosity of darkness
Enveloped in sin I myself did not commit
I lived chained to a hope in nothingness
Until God’s light shown on me and I invited Him in

I am a new creature created by His hands
His masterpiece – His workmanship
He chose me to be blameless and perfect
Before the foundations of the world were anchored to their place
He inscribed my name upon His palms
And numbered every hair in my tresses
I am royalty, the daughter of a King
I am His child and His friend
I am adopted into His forever family
He purchased me with His blood and
Paid all that will ever be charged against me
I am redeemed, forgiven, and complete
I am justified and one with Him in spirit
I am a citizen of heaven sojourning in this world
I have a spirit of power, of love and a sound mind
I have the mind of Christ and
I can do anything through Christ
Who loves me with His inseparable love
I am established, anointed and sealed for His purposes
I am His tabernacle and a minister of His reconciliation
I am seated with Christ in heavenly places
I am blessed and accepted in Jesus
I am victorious and triumphant
I am the righteousness of God in Him
I am secure in my promised inheritance
I have His might and strength
And all of His promises are Yes and Amen to me
Because He died, I am not just alive, but eternal.
I am accepted by the only One who matters.
I have been delivered from the power of the darkness
And transferred by God to His Kingdom of Light
You ask Who am I? My answer – I am His.

Compiled by Marietta Harrell from the NKJV

The sum of my experiences cannot describe me
The offspring of my womb cannot label me
The position I hold for work cannot brand me
The possessions I own cannot explain me

I was born into the viscosity of darkness (Psalm 51:5)
Enveloped in sin I myself did not commit (Rom 5:12-19)
I lived chained to a hope in nothingness (Eph 2:1, Rom 3:23)
Until God’s light shown on me and I invited Him in (Isa 55:1-3)

I am a new creature created by His hands (2Cor 5:17; 1Pet 1;23)
His masterpiece – His workmanship (Eph 2:10)
He chose me to be blameless and perfect (Eph 1:4, Mat 5:48, Deut 18:13)
Before the foundations of the world were anchored to their place (Eph 1:4)
He inscribed my name upon His palms (Isa 49:16)
And numbered every hair in my tresses (Matt 10:30, Luke 12:7)
I am royalty, the daughter of a King (1Pet 2:9)
I am His child and His friend (John 1:12, 15:15)
I am adopted into His forever family (Eph 1:3-8)
He purchased me with His blood and (1Cor 6:20, Acts 20:28, Heb 9:22)
Paid all that will ever be charged against me (Eph 2:13, Heb 9:14, 10:19, 1John 1:7)
I am redeemed, forgiven, and complete (Col 1:3-14, 2:9-10; Eph 1:7)
I am justified and one with Him in spirit (Rom 5:1, 8:33, 1Cor 6:17)
I am a citizen of heaven sojourning in this world (Phil 3:20, 1Pet 2:11, John 15:18-19)
I am His ambassador (2Cor 5:20)
I have a spirit of power, of love and a sound mind (2Tim 1:7)
I have the mind of Christ and (1Cor 2:16)
I can do anything through Christ (Phil 4:13)
Who loves me with His inseparable love (Rom 8:35-39)
I am established, anointed and sealed for His purposes (2Cor. 1:21-22)
I am His tabernacle and a minister of His reconciliation (1Cor. 3:16, 6:19, 2Cor 5:18)
I am seated with Christ in heavenly places (Eph 2:6)
I am blessed and accepted in Jesus (Eph 1:3, 5-6)
I am precious and beautiful (Psalm 139:17, Prov 31:30)
I am a light shinning in this dark world (Matt 14:16)
I am more than a conqueror, I am an overcomer (Rom 8:37, Rev 12:11)
I am victorious and triumphant (2Cor 2:14, Rom 8:37)
I am the righteousness of God in Him (2Cor 5:21)
I am secure in my promised inheritance (Rom 8:17)
I have His might and strength (Col 1:11, Phil 4:13)
And all of His promises are Yes and Amen to me (2Cor 1:20)
Because He died, I am not just alive, but eternal. (Rom 6:11, John 3:16, 10:28)
I am accepted by the only One who matters. (1Thes 2:4, Acts 5:29)
I have been delivered from the power of the darkness (1 Pet 2:9, 1Thes 5:5)
And transferred by God to His Kingdom of Light (John 1:4-5, 1Pet 2:9)
To the query – Who am I?
My indisputable unwavering response – I am His. (Rom 8:15-17)

Recently, at a park, my oldest grandchild had a Razor RipStik, which is extremely difficult to ride even for adults. It is similar to a skateboard, but instead of four wheels, it has two wheels – one in the front and one in the back. He had made great progress at controlling it and was able to ride for long periods of time. His younger sister wanted to try. She kept telling us she couldn’t do it. All of us began encouraging her, “You got this.” “You can do it.” “You can do anything you put your mind to.” And shortly, with a bit of help, she was riding!

Why is it that encouraging children comes so easy, but encouraging adults is a bit harder? I am not talking about people you sporadically come into contact with at work or church, but those you know best – your spouse, your parents, and maybe even your boss. Is it that our familiarity causes an expectation? Perhaps it’s as simple as we don’t think about it because our relationship has grown comfortable.

When first married, we had pretty defined roles – he worked outside and I did the work inside. As our incomes grew and demands for our time increased, we hired help for mowing and weeding. Pretty soon, as I saw it, I was doing all the work – laundry, dishes, cleaning. Complaining got me nowhere. We hired a housecleaner to come every couple weeks. But the day-to-day living chores continued to fall to me.

I employed this truth – everyone loves to be encouraged and thanked. I began to profusely thank him for every time he emptied the dishwasher or did a load of laundry. I lavished encouragement over him with my thankfulness – “Thank you so much for helping me by unloading the dishwasher. You are the best husband ever.” I noticed that he began to help more.

I applied this to my job. I sent notes of encouragement to my boss and his boss. Every time I got a raise – no matter how tiny – I sent a thank you card to the head of our department. Pretty soon, upper management knew my name. When my husband was transferred to another state, upper management would agree to create a new position for me – not just once, but several times.

I do not encourage others in order to manipulate, but from a sincere heart. I am thankful for my husband’s help and I am thankful I received raises when I worked. The outcome of my thanks and encouragement was the fruit of building others up.

Select someone close to you (if married, choose your spouse). Ask the Holy Spirit to enable you to encourage them every day. Find something good to say every day to them. It only needs to be a short sentence. Don’t expect any encouragement in return. Be patient. This will bear fruit.

“And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24)

Go encourage someone.

“Please tell me what it is their business does? How do they make their money?” my friend was asked. Working for a family who was extremely secretive about their lives and business, my friend answered, “It is not my story to tell.” Powerful words that put a stop to the questions and ultimately to gossip. I strive to make that my pat answer when asked about confidential and privileged information about someone, although I don’t always get it right.

Recently, a woman came to me with confidential information about her husband she “wanted me to know”. I asked her if she had permission to share this information with me. She didn’t. I suggested she call him to ask for permission. She wouldn’t. I told her this was his story and if he wanted me to know, he would have told me. She tried to share the information from several ways, but each time I effectively stopped her. I wish I could tell you that I have been successful with stopping others or stopping myself, but the truth is I have not. Although each time I am faced with a situation, I hope to improve with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Gossip is the sharing of information, even if true, about another person we have no business revealing. A gossiper is also called a whisperer, talebearer, babbler, slanderer and busybody. Gossip may look like venting, spreading rumors and opinions, or seeking advice.

“But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” (James 3:8) Nothing portrays this better than gossip. With it you can ruin a person’s reputation, divide relationships, and destroy trust. “He who covers a transgression seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates friends.” (Proverbs 17:9)

Tackling this problem requires us to admit we partake in gossip – either by actively sharing or by listening. Confessing the sin of gossip to God will free us to ask the Holy Spirit to help us conquer gossip. Ask ourselves why we want to share something about someone else. Getting to the bottom of our intentions may help us defeat gossip. Pray scripture over ourselves: “Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips.“ (Psalm 141:3) James’ advice is to take our time to think through what we say before we speak. “So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath;” (James 1:19) Refuse to listen to gossip. Walk away, change the subject, gently ask the person not to share – just don’t listen. “Where there is no wood, the fire goes out; and where there is no talebearer, strife ceases.” (Proverbs 26:20) Every time we feel the need to share something or listen to someone share, change the tearing down to building up. “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.” (Ephesians 4:29)

Go build up someone.

One of the basic principals of Christianity through our personal relationship with Jesus is forgiveness of sins. Jesus says in Luke 6:37 “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” If we are to strive to mirror Christ, that includes forgiving others – even when they don’t deserve it.

Jesus says in Mark 11:25-26 “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.” Forgiveness doesn’t see right and wrong. I confess that this is not easy…especially when you have been wronged. But with God all things are possible.

There are to be no limits or conditions to our forgiveness if we are to model Christ. We need to get to forgiveness quickly so we don’t give the devil a foothold. God tells us in Isaiah 43:25, “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.” We know that God can’t truly forget anything. If He did, then the devil would know something God didn’t know. God chooses to forget by not counting our sins against us. Forgiveness is a choice – a matter of our will – not of our feelings. My Pastor says when you don’t forgive someone, they hold your happiness in their pocket. Choosing not to forgive may seem like we are in control, but in actuality, unforgiveness controls us. It causes bitterness and a hard heart, which negatively impacts all of our relationships.

So how do we forgive others the way God has forgiven us? It cannot be done without the Holy Spirit changing us – prayer is our first line of defense. Next, we must consciously choose to forgive quickly. When we are the offender (even if only in the other person’s eyes), we should strive to say “I’m sorry” and ask for forgiveness quickly. Commit that you will not bring up past wrongs – period. And finally, just as you were forgiven without paying a price, do not require others to pay a price for your forgiveness.

I encourage you to write down all unrepented sin and all unforgiveness on a blank piece of paper. When you are finished, pray over the paper – asking God to remove all unforgiveness in your heart. Then destroy the paper (burn it, shred it, tear it to pieces) and make it as dust beneath your feet. If you need to make something right with someone, write out a letter apologizing. Sleep on it, go back to it and make sure it does not make excuses for your behavior. Show it to your pastor for counsel. Then read it to them in person or over the phone; mail it to them; or, if they have passed away, read it aloud and destroy it. And don’t bring anything up or talk about it with anyone else – ever.

Go forgive someone.

The first day of a high school public speaking class changed me, an extremely shy child, forever. Each student interviewed another and introduced that person in a speech. Things would have turned out different had I have gone before my interview partner. My fellow student pointed out I was extremely quiet so he had a hard time getting information. He closed with these words – “I believe, however, that still waters run deep.” I had come face to face with how I was perceived. I agonized over his description. I was an introverted young teenager. I did not want to be that person. I wanted to be heard and noticed. I wanted to express myself. I wanted to be different. I made up my mind that I would change – I would not be that shy teenager any longer. During the eight introductions between his speech and mine, I changed. When my speech introducing him was completed, the teacher asked him if he was sure he had interviewed me. After the class ended, I was asked to be on the speech team. The girl that had walked into that class never left – a new girl emerged.

As Christians, we are in a constant state of sanctification. Philippians 2:12 reminds us to “…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Not because we are saved through our works, but our faith works together with the Holy Spirit and our efforts to progress us towards being a mirror of Christ’s characteristics. One of the lists of a believer’s traits can be found in 2 Peter 1. I read that list (self-control, godliness, brotherly kindness, etc.) and realize there is much work to be done within myself. I read books, listen/watch teachings on Christian traits, and read scriptures over myself. Permanently changing my character is not easy. Knowledge does not always bring change – I need practical application.

When I lie in bed at night, I reflect on my day. First I think about what I did that mirrored Christ’s image – being kind to the clerk who kept talking to her friend on the phone instead of helping me, or stopping to help someone even though it made me late. Then my thoughts turn to what I didn’t get right – any type of negative behavior. I examine myself to find out why I acted or reacted badly. I concentrate on my behavior only. What someone else does or doesn’t do should not dictate my actions or reactions. We are all in different places of being a reflection of Christ’s characteristics. I can only change me so that’s where I focus. I brainstorm how I could have handled a particular situation better. I relive the event in my mind handling it anew.

Paul said in Romans 7:15 “…For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.” Changing our character is difficult, but with God all things are possible.

Go be different.

“Greg, get up! It’s another day in which to excel.” When my husband was a child, his father would wake him every morning with those words. Needless to say, he excels at all he undertakes. His father planted good seed in him.

A farmer selects seed based on what he wants to grow. Seed is an investment as is the knowledge and equipment that will nurture it. A single seed will produce exponentially more crop. Reaping happens in a completely different season from sowing.

Our words are seeds. What we plant is what we will harvest. Negative words bring forth curses; and positive words, good fruit. We have the power to give life or death to not just an individual but circumstances. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” (Proverbs 18:21) It is easy to overlook this powerful truth as concerns our family members (we are prone to hurt those we love with our words). This principle carries into almost every area in our life including ourselves – we can be our own worst denigrators.

How many times have you found yourself complaining to someone about your kids, spouse, or parents recapping their negative characteristics, especially when you are frustrated with them? Those words spoken over them are destructive – a death curse. They bear no good fruit – just tares and thorns.

Far too often negative behaviors are retold in detail to God during prayer. God knows the situation – it’s not necessary to echo the problem. The retelling gives life to the problem and may expose someone unnecessarily. Negative words serve only the purposes of advancing the kingdom of darkness.

In Romans 4, Paul tells how God changed Abram’s name to Abraham, which means “father of a multitude.” This was done when Abraham was old and had no children. God spoke life over Abraham – “…God…calls those things which do not exist as though they did.” (Romans 4:17) Every time Abraham heard his name, he was reminded of God’s promise for him.

It is difficult when we are frustrated with someone to speak positive words, even in prayer. It helps to use God’s Word and turn scripture to prayer over someone. God’s promises for you are the same ones He has for others. By speaking blessings and calling the things which we do not yet see as though we do, (the same thing God did with Abraham) we are planting godly seed and advancing God’s kingdom. God always watches over His Word so it accomplishes His purposes. When we utilize His Word, we are in agreement with God’s will. You may not see the harvest of your positive words immediately, but be patient and trust that there will be a reaping in the perfect season.

“I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live”. (Deuteronomy 30:19)

Go plant some good seed.