July 22, 2018

‍

Have you ever had one of those days?  Things don’t go as planned and no matter how much you try to suck it up and put on a happy face – it doesn’t work.  Have you ever had a friend or relative that is grumbly as a natural state of being? Usually, you can read their emotions on their face.  Years of grumbly make an impact on the lines of the face.  It tells whoever is approaching that they need to tread lightly.  It states loudly that they cannot handle one more item to do or one more burden to carry.  They are unapproachable and closed off.  

Then you may come across a friend that no matter their circumstances, when they are asked “How are you?” they answer that they have never been better. Usually, this person chooses not to get bogged down with the temporary and refuses to feel down regardless of their circumstances.  You can see the juxtaposition of the personalities displayed perfectly by the picture of my cat, Smokey, and my dog, Bailey.  Smokey is irritated by the very existence of Bailey, and Bailey thinks life is wonderful and loves her furry friend.

I have often told my daughter Emily, “choose joy baby girl”.  To the extent of having someone work on their tendency to choose a positive thought process versus a negative thought process, the saying works.  A colleague at work heard me tell Emily to choose joy. She mentioned several times during stressful situations that she thought if she could just choose it, she could be better.  One morning, after a particularly emotional and stressful workday the day before, she admitted through tears that she had tried to choose joy during the tears and heartache and that it didn’t seem to help.

The conversation switched to a deeper level.  When you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and you know that you are a child of the king, your relationship to the world and the situations of the world are supposed to be rooted and founded in Him.  Looking at a situation from the standpoint of an heir of Christ or a member of the “royal family” should produce a viewpoint that is very different than someone who does not have the same inheritance.

I have recently started watching a television show that has been on for quite some time.  Please don’t judge me on my television show selections, but I hope I can use this show as an example of our relationship to the King. “Blue Bloods” is a show that reveals the life of a family that has multiple generations that have chosen to serve in the NY Police Department.  The grandfather used to be the police commissioner, the current police commissioner is his son and the lead character, and the grandchildren consist of a beat cop, police detective, and an assistant district attorney.  Every Sunday, the family shares a meal around the dinner table where they discuss topics of the week that include the heavy responsibility of the family and their position and responsibility to their choice of life work.  Even the greatgrandchildren are exposed to the inside thought process of being a member of the family.

All the members of the family share an identification of their family’s position and responsibility to the City of New York.  They can neither get away from being part of the legacy and often are given opportunities that come to them because of who they are.  They make choices and experience daily conflicts and burdens that come with being a part of the family.  They cannot hide from their identity, or deny their heritage.  It covers each decision and every conversation.

I find that to be a worldly example of being born into an identity.  But I live in a relationship with my heavenly father and am called to make decisions and experience life through the eyes of my father and my impact on the world should be in line with being a member or the royal family and a Christian.

In Romans 8:17 Paul says, “Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” According to this verse, we share in the sufferings of Christ now and will share in the glory of Christ later as His “co-heirs” or “joint-heirs.”

As God’s children and heirs to His kingdom, we receive our inheritance and our responsibility as a child of God to look through the lens of our Father and find our foundation in our position in the family.  We will experience life with a heavenly mindset.  Anything that happens to us in this world cannot take away our inheritance and it cannot change our relationship to the father.  The solid foundation of being a member of the “royal family” should give us the peace of our identity.  A couple of weeks ago, we discovered that God delights in His children. That He shouts in joy over his children.

In Zephaniah 3:17  “The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior.  He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy."

Since feeling or acting happy is not the same thing as joy, we know that happy is situational.  You may have a good day at work.  The kids get a nap.  You get a raise.  A friend spoils you with time and attention.  Those things may be good things, but they are temporary.  Joy is not the natural bend to your personality. Joy is something that is felt in your soul.  It is a state of well-being.  It is a peace that runs through the core of your identity. It gives you the insight to the Father and what He deems as acceptable behavior.  It gives His children the intimate knowledge that you are loved by the Father and there is nothing you can do to separate your identity as His child.  

You are a daughter of the King!  Sit in that thought!  Jot down what that means to you.  How would your life change if you fully believed and felt the relationship you have with the Father?  How would you respond to the daily struggles you may experience if you are able to fully comprehend your position?  This does not give us the right to treat others as if they are less than.  This should spur us on to behave and live in a mindset that we represent our Father and we can reveal His character to others through our behaviors.

I choose to have the mindset that I am a daughter of the King!

Kathy

‍