Found in Christ

FOUND IN CHRIST

Becoming the person you were made to be

Reflections From

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

EPHESIANS 1:3

FOUND IN CHRIST

Becoming the person you were made to be Reflections From

COVER PHOTO: © shutterstock.com/Carpathian, Ukraine

EDITORIAL TEAM: Anne Cetas, Becky Knapp, Dave Branon, Tim Gustafson, Alyson Kieda, David Sper • ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Scriptures taken from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. © 2023 Our Daily Bread Ministries. All rights reserved. • Printed in Europe.

FOUND IN CHRIST

erhaps the hardest part of life on earth as small, limited human beings is that we can’t see into tomorrow. We have no idea how things will turn out, what new challenge might be round the corner or what losses and sorrows we are soon to face. The relationships, work, hobbies and reputation we find our identity and security in can change in an instant, leaving us full of questions and confusion.

The good news is that God offers us each a foundational identity that remains just as reliable and sturdy, no matter how our world might change . . . Come and journey with us in this special edition of Our Daily Bread as we explore together just what it means to be found “in Christ”. These uplifting devotions from Our Daily Bread will direct you to the eternal security we have when we are found in Him—and how this identity allows us to truly become the people God made us to be.

EPHESIANS 1:3

It truly is a privilege to share with you some of the “spiritual blessings” we have together “in Christ” (EPHESIANS 1:3).

In Him, Your friends at Our Daily Bread Ministries

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

1 The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites.

11 The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. 12 When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’

13 ‘Pardon me, my lord,’ Gideon replied, ‘but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, “Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?” But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.’

14 The Lord turned to him and said, ‘Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?’

15 ‘Pardon me, my lord,’ Gideon replied, ‘but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.’

16 The Lord answered, ‘I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.’

MIGHTY WARRIOR

When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.” [ JUDGES 6:12 ]

Eighteen-year-old Emma faithfully talks about Jesus on social media, even though bullies have criticised her joy and enthusiastic love for Christ. Some have attacked her with remarks about her physical appearance. Others have suggested a lack of intelligence because of her devotion to God. Though the unkind words cut deep into Emma’s heart, she continues to spread the gospel with bold faith and love for Jesus and others. Sometimes, though, she’s tempted to believe her identity and worth are determined by the criticism of others. When that happens, she asks God for help, prays for her persecutors, meditates on the words of Scripture and perseveres with Spirit-empowered courage and confidence.

Gideon faced fierce tormentors—the Midianites (JUDGES 6:1–10). Though God called him a “mighty warrior”, Gideon struggled to let go of his doubt, self-imposed limitations and insecurities (VV. 11–15). On more than one occasion, he questioned the Lord’s presence and his own qualifications, but eventually surrendered in faith.

When we trust God, we can live like we believe what He says about us is true. Even when persecution tempts us to doubt our identity, our loving Father confirms His presence and fights on our behalf. He affirms we can walk like mighty warriors armed with His absolute love, guarded by His endless grace and secured in His reliable truth. XOCHITL

REFLECT: Which verses help you remain steadfast when you’re tempted to doubt your identity and worth?

What can you do to combat verbal attacks?

PRAY: Dear Lord, please help me to recall Your love and respond in grace every time someone tempts me to doubt my value or question my unique role.

DIXON

The L ord is with me; I will not be afraid.

Psalm 118:6

5-MINUTE BIBLE STUDY:

PSALM 139:1-5

1 You have searched me, Lord, and you know me.

2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.

4 Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.

5 You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me.

FOR REFLECTION:

1 List all the ways God’s knowledge of you is described. Which do you find most encouraging? Why?

2 List all the places mentioned. How do you feel about God hemming you in with His presence at each one?

3 How does God’s searching knowledge encourage you (V. 1)? In what ways does it make you uncomfortable?

4 How might God’s perfect knowledge shape and strengthen the way you pray (V. 5)?

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for Your constant presence in my life and for Your perfect knowledge of my heart and my needs. Help me to love and trust You more in every situation. Amen.

WHERE NEXT? If you have time, read the whole of Psalm 139— see where your journey with God began, share your heart with Him and ask Him to calm your anxious thoughts.

A BIBLE STUDY TAKE-AWAY! See if listing key words, places, characters and actions can help you examine any other passages in the Bible.

1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.

32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They were put to death by stoning; they were sawn in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and ill-treated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground. 39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40 since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

NO SUCH THING AS ORDINARY

These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. [ HEBREWS 11:39 ]

When Anita passed away in her sleep on her ninetieth birthday, the quietness of her departure reflected the quietness of her life. A widow, she had been devoted to her children and grandchildren and to being a friend to younger women in the church.

Anita wasn’t particularly remarkable in talent or achievement. But her deep faith in God inspired those who knew her. “When I don’t know what to do about a problem,” a friend of mine said, “I don’t think about the words of a famous preacher or author. I think about what Anita would say.”

Many of us are like Anita—ordinary people living ordinary lives. Our names will never be in the news, and we won’t have monuments built in our honour. But a life lived with faith in Jesus is never ordinary. Some of the people listed in Hebrews 11 were not named (VV. 35–38); they walked the path of obscurity and did not receive the reward promised to them in this life (V. 39). Yet, because they obeyed God, their faith wasn’t in vain. God used their lives in ways that went beyond their lack of notoriety (V. 40).

If you feel discouraged about the seemingly ordinary state of your life, remember that a life lived by faith in God has an impact throughout eternity. Even if we’re ordinary, we can have an extraordinary faith.

KAREN HUANG

REFLECT: In what area of your daily life might God be calling you to exercise faith in Him? How can He help you be more obedient and faithful in what you do every day?

PRAY: Faithful God, please help me to trust and obey You always.

We are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works.

Ephesians 2:10

A PRAYER ASKING GOD TO TRANSFORM THE ORDINARY

Heavenly Father, You are the Maker of heaven and earth. The stars are Yours; the seas are Yours; the mountains bow down to You and the trees clap their hands in Your presence. I know that no work of Your hand is anything less than extraordinary—including me. I commit every area of my life to You. I know that You are not limited because of my shortcomings or anxieties. I trust You will supply my every need to fulfil Your wonderful purposes in my life.

Today, I take hold of Your promise in Ephesians 3:20 to do more than I can even ask or imagine. Lord, all I am is Yours.

Amen

3 11 But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?’

12 And God said, ‘I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.’

13 Moses said to God, ‘Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” Then what shall I tell them?’

14 God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: “I am has sent me to you.”’

4 10 Moses said to the Lord, ‘Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.’

11 The Lord said to him, ‘Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord?’

BUT I CAN!

God said, “I will be with you.”

[ EXODUS 3:12 ]

Major W. Ian Thomas (1914–2007, founder of Capernwray Bible School) described his new faith as keeping him “very busy.” Thinking he had to live for Jesus in his own strength, his energy soon dwindled, and out of sheer frustration he nearly quit. Yet that turned out to be the turning point of his Christian life: “I learned to say, ‘Lord Jesus, I can’t, You never said I could; but You can, and always said You would. That is all I need to know.’”

Moses had to learn the same thing about God. Having fled from Egypt, he lived in self-imposed exile while the enslaved Israelites continued to suffer. So Moses didn’t feel like he was a good fit for the rescue mission God called him to.

He asked God, “Who am I that I should go?” (EXODUS 3:11). “What if they do not believe me?” (V. 4:1). And, “I have never been eloquent” (V. 10). In every excuse, Moses said, “I can’t.” Yet God responded, “I will be with you” (3:12); He revealed His powerful, all-encompassing name (V. 14); He promised, “I will help you speak” (4:12). Each time God assured him, “But I can!”

Today, if we’re tempted to say, “I can’t,” we can listen for God’s, “But I can.” Then we too will be ready for life as “the adventure that God always intended it to be,” as Major Thomas reflected.

CHRIS WALE

REFLECT: Where might you be coming to the end of your strength? How can you draw aside to listen to God’s reassuring voice today?

PRAY: Thank You, Lord, that just as my salvation is from You, so too is the strength to live in each moment.

Hebrews

God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

13:5

7 VERSES DESCRIBING GOD’S POWER

1 Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendour, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.

1 CHRONICLES 29:11

2 The Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods. PSALM 95:3

3 He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit. PSALM 147:4-5

4

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. ISAIAH 40:28

5 The kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power. 1 CORINTHIANS 4:20

6 His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms. EPHESIANS 1:19-20

7 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 2 PETER 1:3

3 Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. 4 Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: 6 he will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

GOD’S PLANS FOR YOU

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. [ PSALM 37:4 ]

For six years, Agnes tried to make herself the ‘perfect minister’s wife’, modelling herself after her adored mother-in-law (also a pastor’s wife). She thought that in this role she couldn’t also be a writer and painter, but in burying her creativity she became depressed and contemplated suicide. Only the help of a neighbouring pastor moved her out of the darkness as he prayed with her and assigned her two hours of writing each morning. This awakened her to what she called her “sealed orders”—the calling God had given her. She wrote, “For me to be really myself—my complete self—every . . . flow of creativity that God had given me had to find its channel.”

Later, she pointed to one of David’s songs that expressed how she found her calling: “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (PSALM 37:4). As she committed her way to God, trusting Him to lead and guide her (V. 5), He made a way for her not only to write and paint but to help others to better communicate with Him.

God has a set of “sealed orders” for each of us, not only that we’ll know we’re His beloved children but understand the unique ways we can serve Him through our gifts and passions. He’ll lead us as we trust and delight in Him.

AMY BOUCHER PYE

REFLECT: How does Agnes’ story of living someone else’s life resonate with you? What has God put in your “sealed orders”?

PRAY: Creator God, You’ve made me in Your image. Help me to know and embrace my calling that I might better love and serve You.

You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Psalm 139:13-14

8 TRUTHS ABOUT OUR IDENTITY IN CHRIST FROM EPHESIANS 1:3-9

1 We are blessed with every spiritual blessing (V. 3).

2 We were chosen before God even made the world (V. 4).

3 We are adopted as His children (V. 5).

4 We are subjects of His pleasure and will (V. 5).

5 We are for the praise of His glorious grace (V. 6).

6 We are fully redeemed and forgiven by Jesus’ sacrifice (V. 7).

7 We know the mystery of His will for us (V. 8).

8 We are part of Christ’s united kingdom (V. 9).

7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast. 11 If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ 12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

BREATH AND BREVITY

All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. [ PSALM 139:16 ]

Mum, my sisters and I waited by Dad’s bed as his breaths became shallower and less and less frequent—until they were no more. Dad was a few days shy of eighty-nine when he slipped quietly into the life beyond where God awaited him. His departure left us with a void where he once resided and only memories and mementos to remind us of him. Yet we have the hope that one day we’ll be reunited.

We have that hope because we believe Dad is with God, who knows and loves him. When Dad breathed his first breath, God was there breathing breath into his lungs (ISAIAH 42:5). Yet even before his first and with every breath in between, God was intimately involved in each detail of Dad’s life, just as He is in yours and mine. It was God who wonderfully designed and “knit” him together in the womb (PSALM 139:13–14). And when Dad breathed his last breath, God’s Spirit was there, holding him in love and carrying him to be with Him (VV. 7–10).

The same is true for all of God’s children. Every moment of our brief life on earth is known by Him (VV. 1–4). We’re precious to Him. With each day remaining and in anticipation of the life beyond, let’s join with “everything that has breath” to praise Him. “Praise the Lord”! (150:6).

ALYSON KIEDA

REFLECT: How does knowing that God is intimately involved in your life give you hope? How can you use your breath to praise Him?

PRAY: Dear Lord, thank You for creating me and giving me breath—and for giving me hope. In the sorrow and losses of life, help me to cling to You.

WHO DID GOD MAKE YOU TO BE?

He made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ.

[ EPHESIANS 1:9 ]

When I met Russell, I knew he was the man for me. He was bold and straight-talking, but sensitive and insightful; a rare and special combination. Most of all, I knew that Jesus was the most important thing in his life. I genuinely believed that life with Russell would be an exciting adventure. And I wasn’t wrong!

Like many married couples, we are complete opposites. He’s serious and I’m silly. He’s organised and I’m scatty. And our interests are totally different too. He’s an outdoorsman: a mountaineer, open-water swimmer and deer-stalker who’s into bush-craft and survival. Me? I’m a townie. I like coffee shops and hotels. I think camping is a form of torture. We are hard-wired to specific interests and desires; and our personalities are a world apart. But it’s all part of what makes our life together fun. He is bold and daring; and I love that about him.

Almost as soon as we got married, I began to see the way people reacted to Russell. He was “too black and white,” “too gung-ho,” “too direct”—just “too much.” These were misunderstandings and accusations that his sensitive nature always found deeply hurtful. He often lamented, “I keep having to apologise for who I am.”

For twenty years, I watched the husband I love try to fit like a square peg into a round hole in various jobs, churches and communities.

He just doesn’t seem to connect very well with ordinary people. But an interesting pattern has emerged through the years. No matter where he is, Russell always seems to click with soldiers. He can’t climb a mountain or put up a tent without chatting and laughing with someone with a background in the military. And they love him!

Five years ago, the Lord opened the door for Russell to join the Navy. Today he is serving as chaplain to Royal Marines Commandos. These guys are the toughest of the tough. They like straight-talking men of action; and Russell fits with them like a round peg in a round hole. It’s as though God made him for this role. It is so deeply satisfying for me to watch him in his stride, doing what he does best: connecting with soldiers and sharing Christ with them. And when he does, they listen. He often says, “If you want to find your true identity, die to yourself and trust the Lord to bring the real ‘you’ to life.” Russell was in his late forties when he became a chaplain. All those years of constraint and being misunderstood were all part of God’s plan, readying him for the work to come.

At the right moments, God has revealed different ways Russell fits into “the mystery of his will . . . which he purposed in Christ”

(EPHESIANS 1:9). God’s revelation of His salvation is bigger than all of us; but each of us has a role to play in bringing the gospel to the world in which He’s placed us. God has used Russell to share Jesus with others for many years, even in roles that haven’t particularly suited him; we don’t have to be comfortable to be useful. However, it is in his most recent role as a chaplain that Russell has fully realised that God really did have a specific plan in mind when He formed him. There’s a powerful scene in the film Chariots of Fire, about Olympic Gold Medal winner and Christian missionary Eric Liddell. In that scene, Liddell says: “God made me for a purpose. God me fast and when I run, I feel His pleasure.” God made Russell bold, with a desire for adventure, risk-taking and doing extreme and even dangerous sports. God made me scatty, with a silly sense of humour and a love of art. Who did God make you to be? As long as we put Him at the centre of our lives, we can fully express ourselves the way that He made us. Then, when God sends us to the places and people He has prepared, they will see us living real, authentic, Christ-centred lives according to the good and specific way He designed and made us (PSALM 139:13).

Debbi Fralick, Our Daily Bread contributor

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FOUND IN CHRIST

Becoming the person you were made to be

Perhaps the hardest part of life on earth as small, limited human beings is that we can’t see into tomorrow. The relationships, work, hobbies and reputation we find our identity and security in can change in an instant, leaving us full of questions and confusion. The good news is that God offers us each a foundational identity that always remains reliable and sturdy, no matter how our world might change . . .

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Come and journey with us in this special edition of Our Daily Bread as we explore together just what it means to be found “in Christ”. And how this identity allows us to truly become the people God made us to be. SJ204