Priscilla Shirer | The Importance of Finding Your Identity in Christ

What this episode is about

The discussion emphasizes the critical importance of understanding one's identity in Christ, regardless of life's trials and personal failures. It highlights that God's unwavering love and care for individuals shape their potential and purpose, and encourages believers to trust in who God says they are and what they can achieve through Him.

Key takeaways

• In spiritual deserts, even amidst sin or suffering, divine presence is an oasis—He keeps showing up.
• While others trek miles to find God, our God descends to meet us where we are—no judged stairs required.
• Forget the stair-climbing; God’s love requires no pilgrimage—just an open heart, even in chaos.
• Tears in the night? God’s collecting every drop; your struggles are certainly seen and never dismissed.
• When awareness of God dawns, His silent presence becomes your loudest comfort—He’s always been there.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Priscilla Shirer (Guest) · 35 min speaking
• Jack Ma (Host) · 2 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 5:00: John Gideon, Campbell Brown, Judges, Damon John
2. 5:00 – 10:00: John Gideon, Jesus Christ
3. 10:00 – 15:00: John Gideon
4. 15:00 – 20:00: John Gideon
5. 20:00 – 25:00: John Gideon, Judges, Jesus Christ, Miami
6. 25:00 – 30:00: Jesus Christ, John Gideon, Hebrews
7. 30:00 – 35:00: Jesus Christ, John Gideon

Notable quotes from "Priscilla Shirer | The Importance of Finding Your Identity in Christ"

• A load of laundry. And I was watching the Today Show. Every day that week, Campbell Brown was doing a report on religions of the world. Every day it was a different religion.…

  about Campbell Brown · at 0:46

• FOR ME. SO, HE KEEPS ON coming and he keeps on coming and he doesn't just come for a moment. Judges 6:1 says, The angel of the Lord came and sat down.

  about John Gideon · at 3:19

• Became flesh and he dwelt among us and we got to behold the glory of God THE FATHER. JOHN Y'ALL COULDN'T BELIEVE HE GOT TO LAY EYES ON the holy one.

  about Damon John · at 4:06

• AND WHETHER OR NOT IT IS POLITICALLY CORRECT TO SAY IT, there is still ONLY ONE WAY TO HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD.

  about Jesus Christ · at 20:17

• Thinking in a way that is congruent with the truth, it's going to change the course of your life. GIDEON, YOU HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING that in the year 2019, there are going to…

  about Judges · at 21:55

• Gideon, that when the writer is sitting back trying to figure out how do I close the great hall of faith, that the writer is going to conclude the CHAPTER BY SAYING, I DON'T…

  about Hebrews · at 25:29

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Jesus Christ — Person · Central theological figure (referenced) · 10 mentions · first at 9:38
  Presented as the exclusive means of relationship with God and the basis for believers' identity and freedom.
• John Gideon — Person · Primary biblical case study · 20 mentions · first at 3:27
  Used as the main narrative example (Judges 6–7) to argue that God meets people in fear and reshapes identity into courageous action.
• Damon John — Person · Referenced biblical author (New Testament) · 1 mention · first at 3:50
  Cited for John 1:14 to support the sermon’s theme of God dwelling among people (incarnation).
• Eugene Peterson — Person · Referenced translator/author · 1 mention · first at 4:22
  Quoted for his paraphrase in The Message to reinforce the idea of God’s nearness ('moved into the neighborhood').
  Eugene Peterson of the Message Bible would put that same verse this way. The word became flesh and moved into the neighborhood.
• Campbell Brown — Person · Referenced journalist (illustrative anecdote) · 2 mentions · first at 0:34
  Mentioned to frame a contrast between religious pilgrimage to pray and the Christian claim that God 'comes down' to people.

Books & papers

• Judges — Book · Referenced work · 4 mentions · first at 3:24
  The book of Judges is referenced to discuss the story of Gideon and his transformation through faith.
• Hebrews — Book · Referenced work · 1 mention · first at 25:18
  The book of Hebrews is mentioned to highlight the faith of Gideon and his inclusion in the great hall of faith.

Places & events

• Miami — Place · Setting · 1 mention · first at 22:02
  Miami is mentioned as the location where people will gather to read and discuss the story of Gideon from the book of Judges.
  Thinking in a way that is congruent with the truth, it's going to change the course of your life. GIDEON, YOU HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING that in the year 2019, there are going to…

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 Even when we're in the consequences of our own sin, even when we've been abused and misused by other people, even when we're IN THE MIDST OF TRIAL AND CIRCUMSTANCES IN OUR LIFE, HE KEEPS ON COMING. AND HE KEEPS ON COMING BECAUSE YOU MEAN THAT MUCH TO HIM. HE CARES THAT DEEPLY ABOUT YOU. THE FUTURE AND THE TRAJECTORY OF YOUR ENTIRE LIFE HINGES ON WHETHER OR NOT WE'LL BELIEVE THAT WE ARE WHO GOD SAYS WE ARE,

0:25 and we can do exactly what God says that we can do. Oh, I'm so grateful. I remember watching the Today Show several years ago. This is when Campbell Brown was the main reporter on the Today Show. The boys were little. I have three sons. They were little. And I remember sitting on the edge of the bed folding uh a load of laundry. And I was watching the Today Show. Every day that week, Campbell Brown was doing a report on religions of the world. Every day it was a different religion. That day that I caught it, they were doing a story on the Buddhist faith. And I remember I didn't know much about Buddhism, so I thought I'm just going to watch for a little while. They had traveled halfway across the world, she and her camera crew, so that they could um not only travel halfway across the world, she described, but then ride down a winding road for hours so that they could get to the side of a mountain where they

1:15 climbed up 268 stairs so that she and the camera crew could be beside one of the five Buddha statues that sta stands in and around the area. So she did the story from there. We could see the statue behind her as she described the Buddhist faith. There are many layers of thought that I had while she was discussing Buddhism. But one of the things that she said I can't forget. She said that people that subscribe to that faith that the goal of at least one time in their life is to save up enough money to be able to travel halfway across the world so that they can drive for hours down this winding road, climb up 268 stairs, so that they could get to this position on the side of the mountain so that at least one in their one time in their life they could pray to their god, little G.

2:04 So, I'm watching this and I'm thinking to myself, if I had to save up all that money and fly halfway across the world and drive down that winding road for hours and climb up 268 stairs to pray, I would never pray. Can I get one witness in the house today? Ain't nobody got time for that. But while they are climbing up to talk to their God, little G, our God, THE ONE TRUE GOD, Y'ALL, HE COMES DOWN TO TALK TO US. OH, it's good news. It's good news. It's the message of the gospel. Amen.

3:07 I I can't get over the fact he keeps on coming down. I CAN'T GET OVER THE FACT HE KEEPS ON CONDESCENDING for me. That he LOVES ME THAT MUCH THAT HE WOULD KEEP ON COMING FOR ME. SO, HE KEEPS ON coming and he keeps on coming and he doesn't just come for a moment. Judges 6:1 says, "The angel of the Lord came and sat down." Meaning he nestled himself underneath of the the shade of the same TREE THAT GIDEON WAS UNDER. THE MIDIONITES RIGHT OUTSIDE HIS WINDOW. And the angel of the LORD DIDN'T JUST COME AND GIVE A LITTLE WINK AND A NOD AND GO ON ABOUT HIS DAY.

3:44 NO, HE CAME AND MADE HIMSELF AT HOME IN THE SITUATION WITH GIDEON. THIS IS WHAT THE NEW TESTAMENT WRITER JOHN WOULD SAY IN JOHN 1:14. HE SAID THE WORD WOULD BECOME flesh

3:58 and he dwelt among I want you to hear the shock in John's voice. The word became flesh and and he dwelt among us and we got to behold the glory of God THE FATHER. JOHN Y'ALL COULDN'T BELIEVE HE GOT TO LAY EYES ON the holy one. Eugene Peterson of the Message Bible would put that same verse this way. The word became flesh and moved into the neighborhood. This is the beautiful thing about our God. He keeps putting on flesh and moving into the neighborhood. That means he is fully engaged and aware of what's going on in your marriage. He knows what's going on in the recesses of your heart. I want you to know he knows the details of your financial dilemma. I want you to know that he is fully engaged. He doesn't just sit on high and look down low and give a wink and a nod.

4:55 Mm- He's all up in the business of what's going on in your relationship. I want you to know HE IS FULLY AWARE OF WHAT'S going on between you and your mom or you AND YOUR DAD. HE'S FULLY AWARE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING IN THAT POOL OF friends where YOU'RE HAVING A LITTLE BETRAYAL AND STRIFE. HE IS FULLY AWARE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING IN YOUR MINISTRY OR ON YOUR JOB. HE KNOWS WHAT'S UP WITH YOUR TEENAGER OR YOUR YOUNG ADULT DAUGHTER. YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT YOUR GOD SEES YOU AND HE'S FULLY EMERGED AND and and and AND HE FULLY ENGAGES WITH THE DETAILS OF WHAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR LIFE. I WANT YOU TO KNOW THERE'S NOT ONE TEAR THAT YOU ARE CRYING THAT IS GETTING LOST IN THE CARPET FIBERS OF YOUR BEDROOM FLOOR.

5:34 EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THOSE TEARS IS BEING CAPTURED IN THE PALM of Almighty God. He sees you and his eyes are on you. There is not one night that you are spending awake wrestling over what you going to do with THAT ISSUE. THE HOURS YOU'RE SPENDING AWAKE AND YOUR SPOUSE IS ASLEEP. THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW HOW YOUR HEART IS IN TURMOIL AND HOW YOU CAN'T SLEEP AT NIGHT BECAUSE OF THAT ISSUE YOU ARE FACING. YOU NEED TO KNOW THAT YOUR SPOUSE MIGHT NOT KNOW. But God sees you.

6:04 He sees you. So the angel of the Lord, he comes and he sits down under the shade of that oak tree. He is immersed and engaged with Gideon. And I want to make sure you're aware of the fact that verse 11 says he came. Verse 12 says he appeared to Gideon. Verse 11, he's there, but Gideon doesn't know it. It's not until verse 12 that there is some sort of supernatural unveiling of the eyes of Gideon so that he becomes aware of the presence of God near. We don't know if 20 minutes passed or whether it was 48 hours. We don't know how long, but there is a lapse in time here where Gideon is completely unaware of the presence of God there.

6:55 But that does not make God any less there just because he's not aware of it. God is fully immersed underneath the shade in the shadow of that difficult situation and that circumstance and he is studying Gideon. Even though Gideon is unaware of his presence, which means he sees the lines of worry and frustration on Gideon's forehead. He's fully aware of the fear and the skittishness that Gideon would have had while he hides out from the Midianites. He is fully aware of everything that is happening as he watches Gideon go over and over again about the threshing of the wheat, the mundane, tedious job that Gideon would have been ENGAGED IN. HE'S FULLY AWARE of all those details even though Gideon is unaware of his presence. That means that it is POSSIBLE AND IT IS SO THAT God is near and hovering and presiding and aware of everything that is happening in your life even when you're unaware of him.

7:49 When you cannot trace his hand, trust his heart. He's there. He's there. And by the way, can I just tell you that threshing wheat was usually an open air activity. Threshing floors were on the top of hillsides. The reason why they were on the top of hillsides is because that's where the wind blew. And the goal of threshing wheat, of beating the wheat, was to dis dislodge the nutrientless chaff from the wheat. And when they were in in an open air setting, when the chaff was dislodged, the wind would drive the chaff away. You read that poetic phrase all throughout the Old Testament, the wind driving the chaff away. That's why threshing would normally take place in an open air setting on the top of a hill. But where we see Gideon here in verse 11 and 12 is not in an open air setting. He's in a wine press. A wine press was the opposite of where a threshing floor would be. It was usually in the deep

8:45 concave depression at the base of a rock. So he is in a place of hiding. The reason why is because if the wind carried THE CHAFF AWAY, THE SCENT OF IT MIGHT reach the Midionites. And if the Midianites became aware that there was another harvest, they would come back to pillillage THE ISRAELITES AGAIN. SO WHEN WE MEET GIDEON IN these two verses, Y'ALL, HE IS HIDING. HE IS AFRAID. HE IS trying to keep his harvest from being discovered. WHEN WE SEE GIDEON IN THIS PASSAGE, HE'S TRYING NOT TO BE FOUND. And in THE PLACE WHERE HE'S TRYING NOT TO BE FOUND, the angel of the Lord finds him.

9:25 Let me tell you why this is good news. This is good news for any of you who have family members or loved ones or children and they're trying not to be found. They have dug their heels into the ground. They refuse to respond to the gospel OF JESUS CHRIST. NO, NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU SHARE WITH THEM, NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU PRAY AND ASK THE LORD, IT SEEMS LIKE THEY ARE on the run from God AND THAT THEY WILL NEVER BE FOUND. I WANT YOU TO KNOW THERE IS A HOUND OF HEAVEN THAT WILL FIND THEM WHEREVER THEY ARE. THERE AIN'T NO HIDING FROM THE ALMIGHTY GOD. He will find you. He sees you. Even when you have turned your back on him, he still does not turn his back on you.

10:07 Isaiah 65, he says, "I allowed myself to be found by people who weren't even looking for me."

10:14 Oh, I wonder if we had Listen, I think if I took this microphone and we just started right here on this very front row and went all the way around this entire room, we would be here well into 2020 giving testimony of the people who were found when they weren't even looking for a relationship with God. So, finally, Gideon's eyes are open. He becomes aware. He becomes aware that God is near. This is one of the consistent prayers of my life. Open up my eyes and let me see. It's what the Apostle Paul prayed in Ephesians chapter 1. I'm praying that the eyes of your heart would be open.

11:06 SO THAT YOU WOULD KNOW SOME STUFF YOU CAN'T KNOW unless he opens up your eyes. SO THAT YOU WOULD KNOW WHAT IS THE HOPE OF HIS CALLING AND CHOOSING YOU. SO THAT YOU WOULD KNOW WHAT ARE THE RICHES OF THE GLORY OF THE INHERITANCE OF THE SAINTS THAT HAVE BEEN DISPENSED UPON YOU sons and daughters. So that you WOULD COME TO A FULL AWARENESS OF THE PRESENCE OF GOD. I DON'T KNOW IF THERE'S EVER BEEN A GREATER thrill in my life. If you've experienced, YOU'LL KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. A GREATER THRILL THAN WHEN YOUR EYES ARE OPEN AND YOU START DETECTING THE FINGERPRINTS OF God in your circumstances. SOMETIMES IT'S THE GIFT OF HINDSIGHT. IT'S WHEN YOU GET TO A CERTAIN STAGE AND YOU LOOK BACK AND GO, "OH, God was all up in that right there. God was all he was doing all that." IT'S WHEN YOU RECOGNIZE THAT WHAT SOMEBODY ELSE IS CALLING COINCIDENCE IS ACTUALLY THE SOVEREIGN HAND OF GOD WORKING STUFF OUT IN YOUR FAVOR.

12:02 It's a thrill, right? When you look back AND YOU SEE GOD'S FINGERPRINTS and his footprints and YOU REALIZE THAT IT WASN'T HAPPEN STANCE THAT YOU JUST HAPPENED TO BE THERE AT the right time to MEET THE RIGHT PERSON TO BE IN POSITION FOR THAT PLACE. IT JUST SO HAPPENED THAT IT ALL WAS PUT TOGETHER. IT WASN'T THE STARS THAT ALIGNED IN YOUR FAVOR. IT WAS THE MAKER OF THE STARS ORCHESTRATING THE DETAILS OF YOUR LIFE. THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD AT WORK. It's the manifest presence of God. I appreciate his omniresence. I'm grateful for his omniresence. Omniresence means that God is everywhere at once. Omniresence means that when I get on a plane and fly back to Dallas, God ain't just going with me and he won't still be here with y'all.

12:45 That's omniresence. Omniresence means he's just as much in my house as he is at your house. That's omniresence. And while I'm grateful for his omniresence, what I'm after is his manifest presence.

12:59 I don't want to just know he's there in theory. I want to see him at work in my life. I want to see him at work. Oh, churchgoer, aren't you just tired of hearing about what he did in the Old Testament? Aren't you tired of hearing about how he uh raised Lazarus from the dead in the New Testament and caused the walls of Jericho to come tumbling down in the Old Testament? Aren't you grateful for the testimony? But doesn't it wet your appetite to want to see it for yourself? I used to uh when our church was smaller, Mary and Martha have both uh been to our church. They they can attest to the fact that it's a large church like your church is. When it was smaller, we used to have testimony service. Now, I don't know if any of you have ever gone to the kind of church where they have old school testimony service.

13:51 I'm talking about where the mother of the church comes up to tell you what the Lord has done for her. When I say the mother of the church, some of you don't know what I mean. I mean back in the day when they would not dare dream of wearing skinny jeans into the house of God. There would never be tennis shoes in the house of the living God. So the mother of the church would come in and she would come in with a suit. I'm talking about a whole suit where the skirt actually came with the jacket. She bought them together. It was a whole suit, right? And she didn't just have the jacket. She didn't just have the skirt. She had the shoes that matched the skirt that matched the jacket, probably in patent leather. And then she wore panty hoes cuz she wouldn't dare not wear panty hoes into the house of God. Remember, you could hear them when your mother walked down the hall.

14:47 And then she would not only have the clutch that would match the jacket that would match the the uh skirt that would match the shoes, BUT NO CHURCH MOTHER OUTFIT was complete without the Oh, yeah. Y'all y'all went to the same kind of church I went to, but it was never ever ever just a regular hat ever. There was always some sort of situation that was on the hat. I mean, it was something on the hat. And I remember that she would come up to the front, she would grab the microphone and first giving honor to God who is the head of my life. She would go through all the details and then she would give a testimony of what the Lord had done on her behalf. And I REMEMBER SITTING ON THE FRONT row piano side and I remember watching the feather and y'all I would as just honestly at 10 years old I remember thinking man if that thing would fly off we'll have a real good service today.

15:57 But I would listen to the testimonies of what God had done. And I remember with my church celebrating what God had done. And I don't remember how old I was, but I remember there being a switch to where I listened to the testimony and I still celebrated, but really it wet my appetite. It was now the testimonies were like divine antagonists stirring up my soul. I wanted to hear the voice of God like that.

16:28 I wanted to experience God like that. if he was still doing that KIND OF STUFF. I WANTED TO know what IT WAS LIKE TO NOT JUST celebrate him in other people's lives, but expect that he could move in my life as well.

16:42 And at a gathering like this one where you are FOR THESE FEW DAYS, THIS IS THE KIND OF SETTING WHERE EVERY now and then what he does is just use it to to stir up YOUR SOUL TO MESS WITH YOU SO THAT YOU'RE JUST NOT SATISFIED WITH BEING A A CHRISTIAN IN NAME ONLY. JUST COMING TO CHURCH, JUST READING a verse a day to keep the devil away. MM-M. THAT'S NOT YOUR GOAL ANYMORE. Now you want to HEAR FROM GOD. YOU WANT TO SEE GOD. YOU WANT TO experience God. And let me tell you something. Once you start to experience God, you are ruined for church as usual.

17:22 It ruins you. Because what you're after is what Gideon had, an opportunity for your eyes to be open and for you to see what you've been reading about your whole life. So once Gideon's eyes are open, God says two things. He says, "Let me tell you who I am and let me tell you who you are." He says, Gideon, he says, "Brother, sister, that's why I came tonight. I came to tell you two things. This is who I am and this is who you are. I know the Midianites are right outside your window. I know your marriage is in trouble. I know the bank account's low.

18:07 I know the struggle on your job is hard. I know the ministry is floundering. I know you're struggling in your parenting. I know you've got unrest in your heart and mind. I KNOW THINGS ARE TOUGH RIGHT NOW. BUT EVEN WITH THOSE MIDIANITES RIGHT OUTSIDE YOUR WINDOW, I CAME TO REMIND you that I am who I said I am.

18:27 AND I CAN STILL DO EVERYTHING THAT I SAID I can do. He looks at Gideon in the midst OF THE TURMOIL WHILE HE'S CURRENTLY HIDING OUT IN FEAR AND TREMBLING AND HE SAYS, "THE LORD IS with you just like I said I always would be." We know that Gideon didn't believe him because he spends the next verse disputing what IT IS THAT GOD SAID. He says, "If the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?" In other words, I don't believe you. But God says, "Your beliefs don't shift the truth.

18:56 The way you feel doesn't change who I am. YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES DON'T DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT. THEY DO NOT GOVERN WHO I AM. I AM STILL SEATED ON THE THRONE. I AM STILL GOD. I STILL MADE THE COVENANT AND I WILL STILL FOLLOW THROUGH.

19:20 So God comes and tells him the word. He says, "This does not change even when your circumstances do. This doesn't shift. I am still on the throne." Okay, let me tell you why this is important, y'all. Because we live in a day where everybody's being told, "You have your truth. You have your truth. You have your truth and I have my truth. Here's a little truth. There's a little truth. Everywhere you look, there's a little truth. Truth. We're being told that there is no standard anymore. However you feel is true for you.

19:58 But there is a standard that is unchanging. It is the same yesterday, today, and forever more. It does not change and it does not shift. HE IS STILL THE ONE TRUE GOD. HE IS STILL SEATED ON the throne. AND WHETHER OR NOT IT IS POLITICALLY CORRECT TO SAY IT, there is still ONLY ONE WAY TO HAVE A RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD. AND THAT IS THROUGH JESUS CHRIST. Through Jesus Christ. And so he comes to Gideon. He says, "I'm going to remind you of this truth because just truth is going to change everything, Gideon. I still am who I said I am. But he said, "I didn't just come, Gideon, to tell you who I am. I came to tell you the truth about who you are." Remember, Gideon is currently operating in fear and insecurity. And he speaks to a PERSON WHO IS CURRENTLY BEHAVING in a way that is out of alignment WITH THE TRUTH. HE COMES TO HIM IN THE MIDST OF that lapse in behavior and integrity. AND HE SAYS TO HIM, EVEN THOUGH I SEE YOU RIGHT NOW

21:07 OPTING OPERATING IN A WAY THAT IS TOTALLY INONGRUENT WITH MY TRUTH, I have come to remind YOU WHO YOU ARE. THAT you are not your behavior. You are not your feelings. YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES DO NOT DICTATE AND CHANGE THE INTRINSIC VALUE OF WHO YOU ARE AS A SON OR A DAUGHTER OF THE MOST HIGH GOD. I HAVE COME TO REMIND YOU THAT YOU STILL ARE WHO I SAID YOU ARE.

21:36 AND YOU CAN STILL DO EVERYTHING I SAID YOU CAN DO. GIDEON, EVEN RIGHT NOW WHILE YOU'RE OPERATING IN FEAR AND INSECURITY, I CAME TO TELL YOU THAT YOU ARE A MIGHTY VAL VALIANT WARRIOR. And if Gideon, I can get you to come up out from underneath these shadows. If I can get you to start acting and behaving and thinking in a way that is congruent with the truth, it's going to change the course of your life. GIDEON, YOU HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING that in the year 2019, there are going to be a bunch of people gathered in Miami that will be reading Judges chapter 6 AND CHAPTER 7. GIDEON, YOU COULD NEVER KNOW THERE WOULD BE CHAPTERS OF THE BIBLE, THE VERY WORD OF GOD THAT ARE GOING TO BE WRITTEN ABOUT YOU. YOU HAVE NO WAY OF KNOWING, GIDEON, THAT IF YOU WILL COME OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THESE SHADOWS AND STOP OPERATING ACCORDING TO THE WAY YOU FEEL, STOP OPERATING IN ACCORDANCE WITH YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES, STOP LETTING THE ENEMY

22:26 DICTATE THE WAY YOU BEHAVE. YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW, GIDEON. YOU'RE ABOUT TO COME OUT FROM THE SHADOWS OF THIS TREE AND YOU'RE GOING TO GO STRAIGHT TO YOUR HOUSE. THAT'S WHAT JUDGES 6 says. YOU'RE GOING TO GO TO YOUR HOUSE AND YOU'RE GOING TO BREAK THE IDOLS THAT ARE INDICATIVE OF YOUR ENTIRE FAMILY LINE. FOR YEARS, Y'ALL BEEN WORSHIPING IDOLS. BUT YOU'RE GOING TO BREAK THE CURSE OF IDOLATRY OVER YOUR HOME IF YOU'LL BELIEVE WHAT I'VE DECLARED TO BE TRUE ABOUT YOU. DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT YOUR WHOLE FAMILY IS DEPENDENT ON YOU? DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS, YOUR GRANDSONS AND YOUR GRANDDAUGHTERS, OUR GREAT GRANDCHILDREN THAT WE MAY NEVER ACTUALLY LAY EYES ON, DO YOU REALIZE THAT THEY ARE COUNTING ON YOU RISING UP AND BEING WHO GOD HAS CALLED YOU TO BE?

23:17 DO YOU KNOW THAT THERE ARE WHOLE GENERATIONAL CURSES THAT CAN BE BROKEN IF YOU GET A HANDLE ON YOUR IDENTITY? But not just that, Gideon. You have no way of knowing that not only is there a Judges chapter 6, but Gideon, there's going to be a Judges chapter 7 because you're going to roll up out of your house and you're going to go straight into battle against the Midionites. AND WITH 300 SOLDIERS AS THE UNDERDOG AGAINST 140,000 MIDIANITE ENEMIES, YOU ARE GOING TO WIN A BATTLE FOR THE ENTIRE NATION. A WHOLE nation is going to BE CHANGED BECAUSE ONE MAN GETS A HANDLE ON HIS IDENTITY. DO YOU KNOW WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE MEN AND WOMEN OF GOD THAT ARE IN THE HOUSE TODAY GET A HANDLE ON WHO THEY ARE? DO YOU REALIZE HOW THE ENTIRE NATION WILL BE transformed when God's people just recognize WHO THEY ARE? OH, THE ENEMIES don't doesn't want you to know who you are.

24:10 OH, HE'S JUST TRYING to get you to believe that you are the way you feel, that you ARE THE WAY YOU'VE BEHAVED, THAT YOU ARE YOUR PAST, THAT YOU ARE YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES, THAT YOU ARE WHAT OTHER PEOPLE HAVE CALLED YOU OR YOU ARE WHAT YOU HAVE EVEN LABELED YOURSELF. AS LONG AS YOU WILL RISE UP AND BE WHO GOD HAS CALLED YOU TO BE, YOU ARE NOT A THREAT TO THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS. BUT ONCE THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS START STEPPING INTO FULLY THAT I AM WHO GOD SAID I AM, I CAN DO WHAT GOD SAYS I CAN DO. I WILL BEHAVE IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE TRUTH OF GOD. THAT EVERYTHING BEGINS TO SHIFT and everything begins to change.

24:44 THE ENEMY IS COUNTING on you not getting this message tonight cuz he knows if we roll up out of here and do right,

24:52 our whole family line will be changed in Jesus name. He knows that NOT ONLY WILL OUR WHOLE FAMILY line be changed, but he knows there is an entire nation that will be completely transformed once the people of God discover who they are. And Gideon, you don't even know that there's a New Testament coming.

25:14 Gideon, you have no way of knowing that in the New Testament there will be a book called Hebrews. Gideon, you can't even recognize the fact that there's going to be a great hall of faith in the book of Hebrews and that the writer is going to need a way to close the chapter. You cannot even imagine, Gideon, that when the writer is sitting back trying to figure out how do I close the great hall of faith, that the writer is going to conclude the CHAPTER BY SAYING, "I DON'T EVEN HAVE TIME to tell you everything about Gideon." He's going to SAY THAT THIS IS A MAN WHO BY FAITH CONQUERED KINGDOMS AND PERFORMED ACTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS AND OBTAINED PROMISES AND SHUT THE MOUTHS OF LIONS AND QUENCHED THE POWER OF THE FIRE AND ESCAPED THE EDGE OF THE SWORD. FROM WEAKNESS, HE WAS MADE STRONG. HE BECAME A MIGHTY MAN OF WAR AND PUT FOREIGN ARMIES TO FLIGHT SIMPLY BECAUSE HE GOT A HOLD OF WHO he really was.

26:08 Amen. So, if you don't mind, as the band comes, I thought there would be no better way to close tonight than by simply reminding you who you are. You are a child of God. YOU HAVE PEACE WITH GOD. THE HOLY SPIRIT LIVES ON THE INSIDE OF YOU. YOU HAVE ACCESS TO GOD'S WISDOM. YOU ARE RECONCILED TO GOD. You are not condemned BY GOD. YOU HAVE BEEN JUSTIFIED. YOU HAVE CHRIST RIGHTEOUSNESS. YOU ARE CHRIST AMBASSADOR. YOU ARE COMPLETELY FORGIVEN. And you ARE TENDERLY LOVED. YOU ARE A SWEET FRAGRANCE OF CHRIST TO GOD. YOU ARE A TEMPLE in which GOD DWELLS. YOU ARE BLAMELESS AND YOU ARE BEYOND REPROACH.

27:17 YOU ARE THE SALT OF THE EARTH. YOU ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. YOU ARE CHOSEN BY CHRIST TO BEAR FRUIT. YOU ARE A JOINT HEIR WITH CHRIST. You share in his inheritance WITH HIM. YOU ARE UNITED TO the Lord, one spirit with him. YOU ARE A MEMBER of the body of Christ. You are a saint. You are hidden with Christ in God. YOU ARE CHOSEN BY GOD. You are a child of light. YOU ARE HOLY AND YOU SHARE IN GOD'S HEAVENLY CALLING. You are sanctified. YOU ARE ONE OF GOD'S LIVING STONES BEING BUILT UP IN CHRIST AS A SPIRITUAL HOUSE.

28:00 You are a member of a CHOSEN RACE. YOU ARE A ROYAL PRIESTHOOD. YOU ARE A HOLY NATION. YOU ARE A PEOPLE for God's OWN POSSESSIONS, CREATED TO SING THE PRAISES of God. You are firmly rooted and built up in Christ. YOU ARE BORN OF GOD AND THE EVIL ONE, HE CANNOT TOUCH YOU. YOU HAVE THE MIND OF CHRIST. YOU CAN APPROACH GOD WITH BOLDNESS, FREEDOM, and confidence. You have been RESCUED FROM SATAN'S DOMAIN, AND YOU HAVE BEEN TRANSFERRED into the KINGDOM OF CHRIST. YOU HAVE BEEN MADE COMPLETE IN CHRIST. YOU HAVE NOT BEEN GIVEN a spirit of fear, but of power OF LOVE AND OF A SOUND MIND. ALL OF YOUR NEEDS, THEY ARE MET BY GOD. YOU ARE ROYALTY IN GOD'S KINGDOM. YOU HAVE BEEN BOUGHT WITH A PRICE AND YOU BELONG TO GOD. YOU HAVE BEEN ADOPTED AS GOD'S CHILD. YOU HAVE direct access to God through the Holy Spirit. YOU CAN BE ASSURED THAT ALL THINGS work together for the good of them who LOVE HIM AND ARE THE CALLED

29:06 ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSES. YOU ARE FREE. SOMEBODY NEEDS TO HEAR that today. You're free FROM ANY CONDEMNING CHARGES THAT ARE AGAINST YOU. NOTHING, AND I DO MEAN NOTHING, can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus. YOU HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED, ANOINTED, AND SEALED BY GOD. YOU CAN BE CONFIDENT IN THIS VERY THING THAT THE GOOD WORK GOD HAS STARTED IN YOU, HE will be faithful to bring IT ALL THE WAY TO COMPLETION. YOU ARE A PERSONAL WITNESS OF CHRIST. YOU ARE A CITIZEN OF HEAVEN. YOU ARE GOD'S COWORKER. You are seated WITH CHRIST IN HEAVENLY PLACES. YOU ARE GOD'S WORKMANSHIP. AND YOU can do all things through Christ who strengthens you in Jesus name.

30:00 Amen. If you are in this room and you have not been living in alignment with the truth, you know you have been living in a way that is congruent with the way you feel or with what you've been told or the lies the enemy has been feeding you. You are like Gideon operating in fear and insecurity instead of in alignment with who God has called you to be. If you want to break free from that missshapen identity today and leave this room with your identity in Christ intact so you can change the course of your life. IF YOU KNOW THIS WORD was from you, DON'T EVEN THINK TWICE. Just run forward. I cannot wait to pray with you that today will be the day of the rest of your life. Come on.

30:49 You are holy. not against me. I am who you say I am. I am chosen, not forsen. I am who you say I am. You are for me, not against me. I am who you say I am. I am chosen, not forsen. I am who you say I am. You are for me, not against me. I am who you say I am. For I am who you say I am.

31:38 Lord, I pray over my brothers and sisters right now in Jesus name. I pray father against every scheme of the enemy to deceive, every scheme of the enemy to distract, every scheme of the enemy to discourage. I pray right now in the matchless name of Jesus Christ that you would stave off every scheme of the enemy. Lord, I PRAY THAT THESE BELIEVERS WOULD BE FITTED WITH THE MIND OF CHRIST. I PRAY A HELMET of salvation over their heads in Jesus' name so that IT WOULD BLOCK OUT THE SCHEMES of the enemy. Lord, if there is any scheme, any battle, any hex, any curse of the enemy, I PRAY THAT IT WOULD BE DESTROYED RIGHT NOW IN JESUS' NAME AND BY HIS BLOOD THAT has been SHED ON CALVARY. FATHER, I PRAY FOR SUPERNATURAL courage by the Holy Spirit that beginning today, she and he will be able to WALK IN ALIGNMENT WITH your truth. WE SAY NO MORE TO THE ENEMY'S ADVANCES AGAINST US, LORD. NO MORE TO BEING

32:40 PLAYED FOR THE FOOL. NO MORE TO BEING TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF. WE ARE WALKING IN FREEDOM AND WHOLENESS AND HEALTH STARTING RIGHT now in Jesus' name. Right now in Jesus name. Lord, I lift discouragement off their lives in Jesus name. Would you blanket them with courage in Jesus' name, a holy boldness in Jesus' name to walk in authority? You are who God says you are. You are chosen. You are free. WALK IN FREEDOM. YOU ARE VICTORIOUS. WALK IN VICTORY. YOU ARE HIS. ACT LIKE GOD'S CHILD. HE WILL EMPOWER YOU BY HIS SPIRIT. SO, FATHER, I PRAY RIGHT NOW in Jesus name that your spirit would rise up in your people. Father, make it so that they cannot live in a way that is in congruent with the truth anymore. I'm saying make them so uncomfortable.

33:37 Make it so uneasy for US TO NOT LIVE IN ALIGNMENT WITH YOU THAT WE JUST CAN'T DO it no more. Lord, disrupt our sleep at night. Make it uneasy for us to NOT HONOR YOU WITH OUR LIVES. FATHER, FOR EVERYONE THAT IS WALKING WITH SHACKLES ON THEIR LIVES IN SOME AREA, I PRAY RIGHT NOW IN JESUS NAME, YOU WOULD LOOSEN THOSE SHACKLES ON THEIR LIVES. FATHER, I PRAY FOR FREEDOM in Jesus' name. Lord, I pray you would TAKE THE TASTE FOR THE DRUG out of somebody's mouth. Take the taste for the alcohol out of somebody's mouth. TAKE THE DESIRE FOR THE IMMORAL RELATIONSHIP OUT OF SOMEBODY'S MOUTH RIGHT NOW IN JESUS NAME. Change their desire, Lord. HEAL A MARRIAGE RIGHT NOW IN JESUS' NAME AS THEY UNIFY UNDERNEATH THE UMBRELLA OF WHO YOU'VE CALLED THEM TO BE. DO IT TODAY in Jesus' name. Father, I speak victory over your sons and daughters.

34:32 Victory in Jesus' name. We give ourselves to you, Lord. We honor you in this mo moment. We thank you in advance for what you're going to do. For how you're going to free us and set us free and change our life and wipe the tears from our eyes. He's got your back. He has got your back. He is on your side. Look at me. Look at me. This is what you do now. This is what you do. Are you ready? Before you make that choice again, you pause. The Holy Spirit's going to give you a holy pause before you make that decision again.

35:06 There's going to be a holy pause where for just a second you can take a breath and ask yourself, is this decision in alignment with who God says I am or not? If you find that you're about to do the thing you always do, and you see that it's from a place of insecurity or fear or lack, something that does not line up with truth, THEN THAT'S THE MOMENT WHERE YOU SAY, "LORD, by your spirit, restrain me from doing what I always do. and help me to live differently. And then whether you feel it or not, you start acting like you are God who God says you are. I'm not going to tweet that. I'm not going to Instagram that.

35:50 I'm not going to say yes to that relationship. I'm not going to go on this date. I'm not going to do this person this way. I'm not going to respond this way. I'm not going to react this way. I'm not going to go down THE SAME WAY BECAUSE I AM NOT WHO I USED to be. I am now who God has called me to be in JESUS NAME. IN JESUS NAME. COME ON EVERYBODY said amen.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Priscilla Shirer | The Importance of Finding Your Identity in Christ"?

Priscilla Shirer (Guest), Jack Ma (Host).

What is "Priscilla Shirer | The Importance of Finding Your Identity in Christ" about?

The discussion emphasizes the critical importance of understanding one's identity in Christ, regardless of life's trials and personal failures. It highlights that God's unwavering love and care for individuals shape their potential and purpose, and encourages believers to trust in who God says they are and what they can achieve through Him.

What is mentioned in this Jack Ma Billionaire Mindset episode?

8 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Jesus Christ, John Gideon, Judges, Hebrews, Damon John, Eugene Peterson. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Priscilla Shirer | The Importance of Finding Your Identity in Christ"?

The episode runs 36 min; the transcript is about 6,042 words in 51 timestamped sections.

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