Beautifully Glorious

This morning I was listening to the Gungor CD Beautiful Things, as the I sang loudly (because I was the only one in the car lol) to the lyrics "You make beautiful things, you make beautiful things out of the dust, you make beautiful things, you make beautiful things out of us" I was reminded of a story I want to share with you.

One day I was in the car with 2 other people, when Everything Glorious by David Crowder Band came on. The lyrics to this song started a short conversation that I haven't thought much about until today. The song says "You make everything glorious, you make everything glorious. You make everything glorious, and I am yours. What does that make me?"

I personally started the conversation by proclaiming how I love that! Little did I know what would follow. One other person agreed, then quickly following the 3rd person in the car stated that they did not like it and that it bothered them. I asked why. There wasn't too much of a response so I went ahead and pointed out the lyrics and how encouraging it is to think that I am glorious because God made me that way!

Side note: When I was a child someone would insult another person, i.e. you're short, tall, skinny, round... and the response was always "God made me that way." So it was nice to be able to proclaim that God made me glorious!!

This person quickly and in a very irritated manner said that's just being conceded!! Because of the atmospheric change we could see there was nothing we were going to say to change their mind. So we ended the conversation.

4 years later I am reminded of it and God shows me that this person did not understand their identity in Christ Jesus. Psalms 139:14 says "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." Isaiah 43:1 says But now, this is what the Lord says— he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel:“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you by name; you are mine."

No matter the circumstances in which you were born, you are NOT an accident or mistake. You are on purpose and for a purpose!! Jeremiah 29:11 says "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future."

Today God wants you to know that you are Beautiful! You are Glorious! You are on Purpose! Say it with me: I am Beautiful! I am Glorious! I am on Purpose!

Awaken to your identity today!

~Awaken Us~
Brenna Stanford

Turn

“Friends, why are you doing this? We are merely human beings—just like you! We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things and turn to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them." Acts 14:15 NLT

Why do we do such worthless things? We may not be slaughtering animals and throwing flowers and things on people, but we do apend our time making money, spending money, playing Candy Crush or Flappy Birds. We spend our energy on things that don't make much of a difference.

I do this too. Not one of us is innocent. We put our trust in our bank account, our ability to have a job and make money. We put our joy in games - that will be removed from the market or that gets lost when our phones break. We put our self worth and love in people who either walk out on us, let us down or die.

What if we put our financial security, joy, love, hope, identity in the LIVING GOD - Jesus Christ? What if when we lose our job there's peace. What if we have joy in the midst of a life storm? What if we spent our time loving people? What if we let God show us what love really is? What if we listened to who God says we are rather than who the media says we're not?

What if we allow Jesus to live in us? What if we allow Jesus to awaken something extraordinary in us? Let's turn from these worthless things for the good news; that Jesus Christ rose from the grave, defeating death and Hell, and is alive, seated at the right hand of God interceding for us so when God looks at us he doesn't see our mess and our sin, he sees the perfection that Jesus is for us!

Let us awaken to that realization and live it out everyday!

~Awaken Us~
Brenna Stanford