Transformative Encounters: Discovering Identity in God

Jacob, verse 24, and Jacob was left alone. You know what happened when he was alone? He got attacked. He got jumped. Suddenly he's wrestling and he doesn't know who it is. And you can imagine Jacob. Here he's in this wrestling match. Somebody has jumped on him, what he has feared. [00:15:29] (22 seconds)


You don't wanna be alone because when you get alone, God does stuff. You know, most of the Christian life is about community. Hear me on this. Most things should not be attempted alone. This Christian walk is a community thing. It's a family thing. It's a do-it-together thing. [00:14:52] (17 seconds)


There are only a few things, and one of those is God going deep in our souls. And there are things that God wants to do if he could only get us alone. And those rare moments that he does, then he comes through and we limp away. [00:15:12] (16 seconds)


At some point, we need to come to the realization we're not fighting with our dad. Listen to me. You're not fighting with your in-laws, okay? I know it feels like that sometimes. It's not your dad. It's not your mom. That's not the problem. It's not your mother-in-law. [00:18:34] (19 seconds)


And the sooner we get to that place, the sooner those dysfunctional relationships can be functional. Yeah, but you don't know what they did to me. I don't need to know. I know what they did to me. And I know ultimately that gets back to my relationship with Jesus. I can't fix them. [00:19:23] (22 seconds)


And when we think somebody else is our problem, when we think someone else is causing us, and we think someone else is wrestling with us, pinning us down, I pray God will open our eyes. See, this is what we've asked for this week. Your presence, God. [00:19:49] (16 seconds)


When we encounter God, he cuts to the heart of our identity. Identity is a confusing thing. It's a complicated thing, but I want to simplify it for you. Okay? Become complicated in our generation. I was walking and praying with a group of people this past week on the Vanderbilt University campus. [00:22:56] (21 seconds)


We got a lot of people who are pretending to be a lot that they are not today. It's all fake. Then, in this moment, because he was honest, he gets an identity from God. He says, Israel. I'm going to call you Israel from now on. But there's one more name that he gets later on. [00:26:03] (20 seconds)


You are not who your parents insisted on you being. My parents, my dad especially, was extremely disappointed. I had a good dad, really good dad. Few complaints. But he wanted me to be in business with him. He raised his five kids to be entrepreneurs. [00:26:31] (24 seconds)


You are whoever God says you are. Not who your sinful past says and not the dreams of someone else. Who does God say you are? [00:28:50] (0 seconds)


And he gets a new name, a new identity, and for the first time, the real blessing of God on his life. No more striving, no more fighting, and then you know what happened? He walked out of there with a limp. He never walked the same again. [00:31:18] (20 seconds)