SPEAKER_03 0:01

My name is Megan, if we haven't met before. And I'm excited to welcome you to more tonight. And I'm very excited to welcome the high school group because they're joining us tonight. It's going to be awesome. Tonight, we are going to be talking about more identity and about who we are in Jesus. And I think it's an important topic because I think we all question a little bit about who we are. And as an example, if you don't mind playing along with me and raising your hands, how many of you have ever taken one of those Facebook BuzzFeed quizzes to see what color you are, what horse you are, what pizza you are, what Disney princess you are? Okay. We've all done it because there's a part of us that's really curious. We want to know who we are. We want to know why we do the weird things that we do. We want to know how the world perceives us. We want to know, we want to know about ourselves. And there's a part of us that kind of questions do I really know who I am? And I was asked by a good friend to describe who I was. And I I couldn't do it. I could say my name and I could tell her what I did, but it was very hard to put a name to like what was me. Does that make sense? Okay. Because my parents could have given me a different name. My name is not me. I could have a different job, so that's not really me either. And I had to kind of revert to saying things that people had told me about myself, and I ended up going, well, my parents have said that I was really stubborn as a kid, and I'm sure that's carried over, so I guess I'm stubborn. And my I don't know, my friends growing up said that I was really shy, so I guess I'm shy. I couldn't tell you who I was. I could tell you what people said about me. Um and I think that's something we all kind of experience. When we're born, when we're first born, we're given an identity. Most of our parents picked out a name for us before we were even here. And before you open your eyes, before you can talk, before you can express personality, you're given an identity by this world. And when you walk around and you grow up, you start to pull identity from places. You start to say, My friends think this about me. Okay, that's me. And then, oh, that looks really good. I'll take some of that identity and I'll try to be that too. And we start to like grab identity from everyone. Our parents, our friends, um, our spouses, sometimes our children. We pull identity from what they say about us. And we end up becoming this kind of like mishmosh of what the world thinks we are. But there's a big problem with that, and you can probably see it coming. But the big problem really is revealed in 1 John 3:1. And this is what it says. See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. The world does not know you. Even if you had great parents and great friends and a great spouse who pour love over you, they still don't know you like God does. And if we try to pull our identity from anywhere else, it doesn't work. The world doesn't know you. The only person, the only person, I really want this to sink in, that has the right to tell you who you are is God. He's the only one. In Psalm, it's true. In Psalm 139, 13 through 17, and I love Psalm 139. If you struggle with knowing that God knows you, this is your psalm. We'll start in verse 13. It says, You made all the delicate inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Before you were born, and before that name was given to you by your parents, God knew you. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex. Your workmanship is marvelous, how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. He knows you. How precious are your thoughts about me, oh God. They cannot be numbered. God knows you, He knows everything about you. He made you, He knit you together. I don't know if you've ever seen someone knit, but when you knit something, you know every single little intricate part of that thing that you knit. Okay, it's not like you just do it in one big swath. You do it every little stitch at a time. That's how God made you. Every little part, everything, and he knows it so well. So we need to go to him for our identity. We need to see what he says about us because he's the only one that has the right to tell us. When my friend was asking me about who I was, and I was struggling to come up with something to say, the truth is I have been a Christian for a long time. I knew God knew me. I knew the psalm. I knew God knew me, but I didn't know me. I didn't know how to put a name to me as a bigger person than just me. Does that make sense? Like the inner inner part of me? I couldn't name it. I didn't know what to call it. So what do you say about who you are? Even if God knows you, how do you say it? And Isaiah 43:1 talks about God naming. And it says, but for now, but now, sorry, but now, thus says the Lord your creator, oh Jacob, and he who formed you, O Israel, do not fear, I have redeemed you, I have called you by name. You are mine. God knows your name. He knows what to name that inside part of you, he knows what to call each little intricate stitch of your knitting. He knows that. And he can name it, and he can let you in on those names. God has a habit of renaming people. Um, if you read through the Bible, he's often giving people new names, which I always think is very interesting. What would it be like to be an adult and be given a new name? How long would it take you to get used to someone calling you something completely different? Um Abram was named Abraham, and Sarai was named Sarah. They wanted to have a baby, and God renamed them the father and mother of many nations. That's what their names meant. Jacob was um originally named Jacob because they called him a deceiver, so that's what his name meant. And then it was changed to Israel, which means the one who wrestles with God and prevails. What a cool name is that! God changed it to Israel. Jesus changed Simon's name to the name Peter, which means rock, because he had a purpose. God was going to build his church on Peter. And then Saul, his name means death, and Jesus changed it to Paul. God is in the habit of changing names. And some of us in here need new names. Our names may not match who we are. God may have a different name for you. And I would ask that tonight you not be shy about asking him what that is. I've done that, and I've said, God, what is my what is my name? When you look at me and you call out my name, what do you say? And I didn't get an answer right away. He had to change some other things in me. But then he actually told one of my friends who was praying for me what my spiritual name was. And she came and told me, and it was so cool. So I know my name. God showed me my name. And I believe he can show you your name too. It may not happen right away. God isn't always like instant God. That's not how it works. He may want to do some other things, he may want you to seek him a little bit more. But don't be afraid to ask. Some of us, honestly, and this is what I needed before I could receive that new name and really understand it. I needed God to rewrite my identity inside. 2 Corinthians 5, 17 says, this means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone, a new life has begun. Everything that's happened throughout your life, as you've grabbed identity, God wants to rewrite those identities. And he wants to make it what he calls you, what he sees in you. He wants to tell you why you are the way you are. He wants to give a name to it, he wants to give a word to it. I often think about in Genesis, and this is kind of a weird way to look at the story, but in Genesis, the story of Adam and Eve, when they eat the apple. I don't know if it was an apple, I always picture it as an apple. But when they eat the fruit and they sin, and then they go hide from God, God comes into the garden and they hear him walking and they go and they hide. So as God's walking through the garden, he asks them, Why are you hiding? And they said, We hid because we were naked and ashamed. And then God says, Who told you that? And I think for a lot of us, we need to look at the things that we've put on ourselves and said, This is who I am, and ask, Who told you that? Because I know that for me, some of the things that I attached to me growing up were not told to me by God at all. And they were actually very opposite of what God was trying to tell me. I was told, you're shy. And I went, Oh, okay, okay, I'm shy. I'm shy. I can't do that, I'm shy. I can't do that, I'm shy. And God said, No, you're bold. And he needed to rewrite that in me. I had been told, you can't do that, you're not talented enough, you're not whatever. And God said, No, I've given you everything you need. You are enough. I needed that identity rewritten. So tonight we're gonna have a time where that can be rewritten in you. There's some of us tonight that are really secure in who we are in God. And so tonight you're just gonna get to enjoy it, and you're probably the most excited because you know it's coming. Um so what we're gonna do is we're gonna have the worship team play. And from now on, it's just gonna be one long worship experience. And we're gonna have some people come up that I've asked to come and share what they've prayed about, about who you are. And they're gonna speak over you, and they're gonna speak God's words to you about who you are. And so I want you to get comfy. That's why we put the couches out. I want you to get where you can worship and just soak it all in. You're gonna be sponges tonight. Just soak it in, okay? Don't worry about writing it all down, don't worry about, oh, I have to remember that. Let your spirit just receive it as the worship team plays. Let your heart open up and then just receive all of it and leave really full of big soaked sponge, okay? Um, there's lots of room in the room. We've cleared out everything. You can go lay down. I soak best with my head to the floor with my arms around me. It looks kind of crazy, but I'm not crazy because God didn't tell me that. Okay. So do whatever you need to do. Um like I said, get comfortable, close your eyes, stand up, sit down. And when the people come up to talk, don't feel like you have to stop doing what you're doing. So if you're walking around the back and your arms are raised and you're just praising Jesus, when someone comes up to talk, don't feel like you have to stop and stand and watch them. It's all just gonna be one long sponge-soaking experience. Is that okay? Okay, awesome. Well, I'm gonna get out of the way and let y'all get started.

SPEAKER_00 11:37

So I thought it'd we'd start with uh some show and tell. Oh, I can't see y'all at all. I need this to read later, so I'm gonna make the decision. Glasses on. I I thought we'd start with some show and tell. Do you remember this from elementary school? Show and tell. You wouldn't necessarily know the people in the class, so your teacher would invite somebody to bring maybe a couple prized possessions from home, and they'd show them off, and you kind of learn a little bit about who they are. So I brought a couple of my prized possessions from my home. Do you want to see? Very good, enthusiastic. So the first thing that I brought is uh it's a stone. Do you like this? It's kind of white and shiny. Check that out. Uh it's probably hard to see maybe from a distance here, but there's there's actually some words that are written on this, uh, a name specifically. And it might not look much to you, uh, but this stone means a lot to me because it was a gift to me from my dad. So that's the first thing. Remind me a little bit later. I'm gonna read uh some of the words that are written on this. So the second prize possession that I have from home is in my other pocket. I keep these things close. Prize possessions. The second thing is uh a little bit of food from home. I have it in my pocket in case I want to snack later. This is difficult to describe, too. Um it's not really like bread, it's a little bit different. It's kind of like a wafer honey kind of, it tastes really great. Uh but the crazy thing about this is like once you have a batch of this in the house, it literally never runs out. And again, that probably doesn't look like much to you, but this is really important to me because my dad makes this for me every day. And it reminds me of him. And if you want to know who I am, you gotta know who my dad is. So I've actually had three different fathers in my lifetime. Um, father number one uh was my biological dad. We uh I never really knew him. He left when I was a baby, uh the marriage split. Uh I didn't know him at all. I finally looked him up years later, like my late 30s, and uh we had lunch like at a macaroni grill in the Orlando airport. It's uh life is weird, you know. That was dad number one. Uh he's a great guy, and is like, you know, he's helped run an orphanage for years in Hawaii, psychologist, and so I respect him. He's just not the dad that I ever lived with. That was father number one. So I would have been Benjamin Jester if life had gone that way, uh, but it didn't, because that was not my last name. There's another name yet to come. So, father number two, uh, a couple years later my mom remarries, and uh my father that I've had for the rest of my life, he adopts my older brother and I, and I become Benjamin Sykes. So, father number two, amazing dad. Uh, I raised him well, I give him high marks. Uh the only caveat with father number two is uh there was gonna not gonna be any going into the the family business with him. He was uh airline pilot, came from a whole line of airline pilots, grandpa, my dad, my uncles, my older brother, all pilots except for me. I'm the maverick. And uh so imagine every every dinner conversation was you know, approach vectors and flapspeeds and salt shakers this, and I just sat politely. So father number two, all-star dad, but he's not a dad that I've ever worked with, like in the family business. We just don't share that in common. And father number two is not the dad that gave me this stone or this bread that I hold in my hands. And in fact, father number two is not even the dad that gave me my last name. I mean, he did, this is a confusing analogy because I'm still Benjamin Sykes, but he didn't give me my very last name, because my very last name is written on this stone, and it was given to me by my real father, and that's father number three. This might be confusing, but Jesus explains all of this in one verse in the Bible. He says, This is in Revelation 2nd chapter, verse 17, Jesus says, Listen to what the Spirit says to the church. To he who overcomes, that's me, and that's you, because of Jesus. To he who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will also give that person a white stone, and on that stone will be a name known only to the one who receives it. So this is who I really am. And this was given to me by father number three. He's the dad I'm at last, but he's really the one that knew me from the beginning. And plot twist is he's my real dad. He's the one that gave me birth. Father number three, he did he did it all. He gave me new life, and he gave me a new name. Because I was the one that ran off from father number three and tried to separate myself from the family. But he he went across the world to find me. And he adopted me into his family and gave me his name. He said, We have to be together. Our home is together. I have to share my life with you. That's my dad. So, father number three is the dad that I've lived with from that moment on. And he told me, he said, There's there's work to be done. And so he invited me into his family business. And I didn't feel like I was adequate at first, but he gave me new eyes so I could do it. He gave me new gifts. The family business of my dad is loving other people, so that's my business now, too. And I'll always be his apprentice. You know, you might remember in the Old Testament, um, in the tabernacle and in the temple, there was an inner room, the Holy of Holies, and it was locked behind this veil. It was the home for God, the Spirit of God. And inside that room, locked away, was the Ark of the Covenant, and inside the Ark, it was like a treasure chest, and it held the family treasures. And there were a couple things that were in that box, if you remember. There was, number one, some hidden manna locked away in the box, and then there were tablets of stone, and on those stones were words written by the finger of God to remind his children who they are and how to love, how to do the family business. So as I close, I want you to understand just how much my dad loves me. Because that place I'm describing, the Holy of Holies, he's torn down that veil, he's knocked out the walls, and he's redecorated the whole place with me in mind, and that's where I live with my dad. Right there. That holy of holies, that new temple, is me. That's me. This temple is where I live with my dad. This temple is where we do our business every day. And I know that might seem strange, but my dad, he's take opened up that treasure chest, and he's taken his treasures, and he's put them in my hand. This is where they are safe. And that might seem strange, but it's not. The only safe place for a treasure, this immense, is in the presence of my dad. Because he's so strong. And this temple is where my dad lives, and so this is where he keeps his treasure. Jesus taught us, he said, where your treasure is, there your heart will be. And my dad's heart is here, and so he gives me his treasure. So when I'm hungry, I just eat. Because this meal never runs out. His mercy's new every morning. It's like communion that I have every day with him. He feeds me. And when I need to be reminded about who I am, my name, about the work that he's called me to do, then I read the words that he's etched on this stone forever. Can I read for you some of the words that are written here? Just as a sense of the promises that our dad speaks over us as his children. I am your father, and you're my child. You're part of my family, and you've been adopted into the family of Jesus. I will never leave you. You're secure as my son, my daughter, and you have a place, a family where you belong and you're cherished. You have a new life with me, and I have a blessing for you that will never run out. I delight in you. You are free. You are my pride and adoration. I love sharing my every treasure with you. I'm so excited to have you in the family business. I love you eternally and uniquely. This is a victory stone engraved with your name. It's my gift to you. Welcome home.

SPEAKER_02 22:08

You belong to God. You are a child of God. You are called of God and you are chosen of God. You are established, anointed, and sealed of God. You are a finished product in progress. You are fully developed, yet developing into what you are called to be. God first knew you as a citizen of heaven with an assured future before he formed you and knit you together in the womb. You can approach God with freedom and confidence. He recognizes you and he knows who you are. He delights in you and likes when you know him as your father. You are not an orphan. You have a family. He knows you by name. He even knows how many hairs are on your head. You are born of God. His DNA is within you. You are marked with the truth of who you are. You are the apple of your father's eye. You are a partaker of his divine nature, and he has willed you into the family's full inheritance. You are precious to your father. You are his workmanship. You are his pride and joy. God has approved you. He accepts you and he calls you his very own. You are deeply loved and fully pleasing to the Father. You are fully complete. God has purposed your life. He has made you special and unique. You are desired of God and you are cared for with compassion by Him. He will never leave you. You are clay in His hand. Be confident He will finish the plans he has for you. You are never forgotten. He has given you His magnificent promises. He has given you the blessings of Abraham. You are assured of success in Him. God your Father is for you, and He has made you more valuable than all of His creations. God shares you proudly among the family. John chapter 17, verse 24 says, God has given you as a gift to Christ. You are a gift to the king. While others gave the king valuable gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, you are the most valuable. You were given by the hand of God as a gift to his firstborn son. The firstborn is to inherit a blessing. In Scripture, we have read of a brother stealing the blessing from an older brother, because the blessing is so valuable. You are the very valuable blessing gifted to the firstborn. And that firstborn, Jesus Christ, has fought Satan who has tried to steal an inheritance that does not belong to him, so he can try to undo the good that God has done. But Satan is defeated, and you are established in Christ. You are inseparable from his love. You are protected under the shadow of the Most High. You are hidden in Christ with God. You are guarded in God. You are established. You are appointed by God to do good works. You are an heir to the throne. You were bought with the price. You are called. You are more than a conqueror. You are placed before God for safekeeping. You are fully surrounded by God's bountiful goodness. You're full of strength. Your life is full of living water. God pours from his own hand good into your life. The Lord's hand is upon you, and he carries you by his spirit and positions you. You are full of the Holy Ghost, grace, truth, wisdom, and faith. You have full power to do great wonders and miracles, good works and deeds. You are given all things. You are woven into a tapestry of love. You overflow with mercy. You are full of God's glory. You are filled with the knowledge of his will. You are a branch of the true vine. The Lord dwells in you. You are his chosen garden in which he dwells in. You are loved constantly and unconditionally. God waters you like a watered garden. You drink from the fountain of the water of life that flows out of the throne of God. Your tree of life is planted along the side of God's river. He called you to bear fruit. Your life will always produce a harvest, and your leaves are for the healing of the nations. God prunes you, so you are full of branches. You are nourished by God, and he sends green grass to your fields. Your life is full of the fragrance of God. You are sweet incense in his nostrils, in the nostrils of God. You are filled with the fragrance of his knowledge. And the Old Testament states: you stand tall and strong like the trees of Lebanon. The tree of Lebanon is also known as a cedar tree. A cedar tree has a distinct odor that repels its enemies. The scent of cedar is a natural repellent for rodents and bugs that could harm the life of the tree. Satan has many names. He is also known as Lucifer, Beast, Serpent, Prince of the Air, and Belzebub. Belzebub, translated, is a demonic fly known as the Lord of Flies. The scent of cedar repels pests, serpents, and flies. You were born as a seed from a God who had the power to cast Satan from heaven. You reside in a king, a son, who had the power to triumph over Satan, disarming all his weapons. And in you is the incorruptible seed that has already been identified as a tree that also has the power to repel its enemies because the very scent of God is infused within your life. You are the tree of Lebanon. You have the scent of God within you to repel your enemies and the pests in your life that try to come to do you harm. God has given you the same victory over the enemy like your other family members. You have victory over Satan. You are free from sin and death. You are a finished product in progress. You are fully developed, yet developing into what you are called to be. You are grafted to the Father. You are a mighty tree of Lebanon, no matter what stage you are in in your development. It is already determined you are created in God's image.

SPEAKER_01 31:21

And he is proud to call you his son.

SPEAKER_03 31:26

You are the beloved daughter of the Most High.

SPEAKER_01 31:35

He beams over you like a father beams over his firstborn son.

SPEAKER_03 31:40

You are beautiful without blemish or stain. You bring God great joy.

SPEAKER_01 31:47

It doesn't matter how the world evaluates you. In God's eyes, you are a success. To God, you are a prize.

SPEAKER_03 32:11

You are a sister of Jesus, a prized part of his family.

SPEAKER_01 32:18

God is for you. He brags about you to all creation, saying, That is my son.

SPEAKER_03 32:27

You are God's unique creation, his masterpiece, the apple of his eye.

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You are strong. You may not always feel that way. You may even feel weak, but with God, you are never weak. Because he will give you his strength.

SPEAKER_03 32:44

You are strong. You are powerful, and you are enough.

SPEAKER_01 32:50

God made you to be a protector. He trusts you. Guard what he's given you to protect. Guard what he's placed into your care. Guard who he's placed into your care.

SPEAKER_03 33:02

You are a warrior princess, a conqueror and a caretaker.

SPEAKER_01 33:10

Know that as you protect what is yours, God protects what is his. And you are his.

SPEAKER_03 33:16

You are hidden in Christ. You are secure. You are placed in the Father's hand, and nothing can snatch you from his hand.

SPEAKER_01 33:26

You are God's son, and he loves you.

SPEAKER_03 33:31

You are seated with Jesus in the heavenly places. You have nothing to fear. You are not afraid.

SPEAKER_01 33:42

When you speak, he listens. He pays close attention to you.

SPEAKER_03 33:47

You are cherished. When you pray, God listens to you. You are heard, you are seen, and you are understood.

SPEAKER_01 33:56

God will never let you go. He will never abandon you. He will never forsake you.

SPEAKER_03 34:02

You have been placed here for this time. You are a daughter full of purpose.

SPEAKER_01 34:10

God made you to be a pursuer. He created you to go after your dreams, to run after your passions, just as He pursues you, just as He runs after you.

SPEAKER_03 34:21

You have everything you need for what God has called you to do. You are equipped.

SPEAKER_01 34:28

God created you to fight. To fight for what you believe in and to fight for what you hold dear. To draw a line in the sand and to stand your ground for what is right and what is good.

SPEAKER_03 34:39

You, daughter, stand on a firm foundation. You are victorious.

SPEAKER_01 34:46

God fights for you.

SPEAKER_03 34:52

You are inseparable from Jesus. You are arm in arm, side by side, and you belong to him.

SPEAKER_01 35:00

You are God's son, and he loves you.

SPEAKER_03 35:05

You are the chosen bride of Jesus. You are loved.

SPEAKER_01 35:14

You can lift those around you. You can lift their spirits. You can lift their fears, you can lift their burdens. You are strong enough to lift the weight.

SPEAKER_03 35:23

You are covered. You are protected. You are fearless.

SPEAKER_01 35:29

God made you to be a lover. So love. Love passionately and intimately. Do not be afraid to show affection for who and what you love.

SPEAKER_03 35:40

And you, daughter, are loved. You are his. You have a place and you belong.

SPEAKER_01 35:48

Do not be afraid. You were not made for fear. God fears nothing, and when you're with him, you have nothing to fear.

SPEAKER_03 35:56

You are eternally loved, you are forgiven. You are free.

SPEAKER_01 36:02

God has gifted you with his spirit. He has given you everything you need to live this life. You have enough, you are enough.

SPEAKER_03 36:11

You are gifted and talented. You have everything you need. You are enough.

SPEAKER_01 36:19

God will never reject you. There may have been people in your life who left, who have cut and run, but not God. He will never leave you.

SPEAKER_03 36:29

You, daughter, are accepted. You've been adopted. You are never alone.

SPEAKER_01 36:37

You are God's son, and he loves you. You bring him joy, he is proud of you, and nothing you can do could change the way he feels.

SPEAKER_03 36:47

You are the beloved daughter of the Most High King.

SPEAKER_01 36:51

When you encounter a barrier, go through it, go around it, go over it. The barriers you encounter are not meant to stop you. They are there to prove to you how much you can overcome with faith.

SPEAKER_03 37:05

You are able to climb to high places. You are an overcomer.

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Do not be discouraged. Do not be dejected. God is with you. Be courageous because you are a conqueror.

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You have worth beyond measure, and you are not done.

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You are God's heir. All that is his is also yours. All that he has won will be given to you. You don't have to earn it. The heir is not an earner, and you are an heir.

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You have been washed clean, you are made new, and you are royalty.

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You are God's son. And he loves you.

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You are a beloved daughter of the Most High.