I was just able to login to my site for the first time in over a year.
Look out world, I’ve got some posting to do.

As a good faith post here is a picture of the newest addition to the Rasmussen household.

Check out this sale from Simply Youth Ministry and be sure to see this super creative Angry Birds video!

As you know I am a huge people person.  One thing I have learned over the years is the power of remembering a name and a special event in someone’s life.  I came across this short video on tips to remember someone’s most valuable asset, their name.

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My greatest desire isn’t to see Epic Church become great; rather to be used by Jesus in a movement to see the Gospel transform the lives of all people within our city.

We are in part 2 of our Membership Series at Epic Church titled: Growing a Movement.  As I have prepared for this series it is totally humbling as I notice all my short comings as it relates to growing a movement which would transform my city and the nations.  This week is about Giving Ourselves Away.  It sounds good.  I mean it is a great title for a sermon but making it become reality is going to be HARD work.  But by the grace of God I pray the Holy Spirit will use those connected to Epic Church to transform their communities by enabling them to give themselves away.

Someone sent me a link to take a Personality Style Profile. http://www.personalitystyle.com/

I enjoy these things SO much that I want to encourage you to take the same test and you can post your results here as a comment or create an email and email me the results.  I would love to get to know you better.

Here is my results, do you think this is me?

Your Personality Style Preview:

Church Planting is hard work.  Period.  The “existing” church has a lot to be thankful for.  Mainly structure and support.  In church planting we are blazing new roads.  Many times without the support of mature Godly men and women around you.  The summer has been tough at Epic Church.  Attendance has been low with many on vacations at different times, plus the factor that Epic Church is a young generation church many have summer plans.

Tonight I started a series called: Identity.  Though then hoopla of summer struggles I have found it it refreshing and necessary to refocus my thoughts and energy on who I am in Jesus.  This extends out of the words of Paul the Apostle.  “Therefore the old has gone and the new has come.”

We are all creations of God but when we move from creations to children the miraculous occurs.  The old falls away and the new comes forth.

Have you been made new?  Do you celebrate this fact?  My prayer is this week we would experience the joy of our salvation though being made new.

Here is a sneak peak behind the new series we are starting tonight at Epic Church called Identity.  This series stems really from a personal reflection at who am I in Christ.  I forget all too often who I am in Jesus and where my value comes from.  So, peak at my musings as I studied this week for tonight’s sermon.

-Jake

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Identity.

When we understand who we are we have power. The power in understanding outselves and what we were created for allows us to live our lives better.

We have been created in the image of the living God. He has given us more worth then we give ourselves.

When we rest in the fact that our identity is given to us and not earned we have so much freedom.

“Don’t worry about what they say, we know what you really are like.”

I am made in the image of God.

I am the inheritor of Gods Kingdom.

I am the Bride of Christ.

I am a Child of God.

Galatians 3:26-27 (NIV)
²⁶ You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, ²⁷ for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Galatians 3:29 (NIV)
²⁹ If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

I am an Alien.

I am Royalty.

Galatians 3:29 (NIV)
²⁹ If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Romans 8:17 (NIV)
¹⁷ 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.

Old is Gone.

1 Corinthians 5:13 (NIV)
¹³ God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.”

2 Corinthians 5:17-21 (NIV)
¹⁷ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
¹⁸ All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: ¹⁹ that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. ²¹ God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

The Identity of Christ’s Followers:

Romans 3:24 – We are justified. (declared “not guilty” of sin)

Romans 8:1 – No condemnation awaits us.

Romans 8:2 – We are set free from the law of sin and death.

1 Corinthians 1:2 – We are sanctified and made acceptable in Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:30 – We are righteous and holy in Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:22 – We will be made alive at the resurrection.

2 Corinthians 5:17 – We are a new creation.

2 Corinthians 5:21 – We receive God’s righteousness.

Galatians 3:28 – We are one in Christ with all other believers.

Ephesians 1:3 – We are blessed with every spiritual blessing Christ.

Ephesians 1:4 = We are holy, blameless, and covered with God’s love.

Ephesians 1:5,6 – We are adopted as God’s children.

Ephesians 1:7 – Our sins are taken away, and we are forgiven.

Ephesians 1:10,11 – We will be brought under Christ’s headship.

Ephesians 1:13 – We are marked as belonging to God by the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 2:6 – We have been raised up to sit with Christ in glory.

Ephesians 2:10 – We are God’s work of art.

Ephesians 2:13– We have been brought near to God.

Ephesians 3:6 – We share in the promise in Christ.

Ephesians 3:12 – We can come with freedom and confidence into God’s presence.

Ephesians 5:29,30 – We are member of Christ’s body, the church.

Colossians 2:10 – We have been given fullness in Christ.

Colossians 2:11 – We are set free from our sinful nature.

2 Timothy 2:10 – We will have eternal glory.

People often say that this or that person has not yet found himself. But the self is not something one finds, it is something one creates. Thomas Szasz

In an act of kindness, Actor Kirk Douglas pulled over to the side of the road to pick up a Sailor on leave who was hitchhiking. When the Sailor recognized him, he said to Mr. Douglas, “Hey, man, do you know who you are?”

That’s a great question that everyone of us should ask ourselves from time to time and when we do, we should listen for God’s answer.

Isaiah 43:4 NIV “you are precious to me. You are honored, and I love you.”

It seems that this college student needed a small two-hour course to fill out his schedule. The only one that fit was in Wildlife Zoology. He had some reservations as he heard the course was tough and the teacher a bit different. But, it seemed like the only choice so he signed up.

After one week and one chapter the professor had a test for the class. He passed it out and it was a sheet of paper divided into squares and in each square was a carefully drawn picture of some bird legs. Not bodies, not feet—just different birds’ legs. The test simply asked them to identify the birds from the pictures of their legs.

Well, he was absolutely floored. He didn’t have a clue. The student sat and stared at the test and got madder and madder. Finally, reaching the boiling point, he stomped up to the front of the classroom and threw the test on the teacher’s desk and exclaimed, “This is the worst test I have ever seen and this is the dumbest course I have ever taken.” The teacher looked up at him and said, “Young man, you just flunked the test.” Then the teacher picked up the paper, saw that the student hadn’t even put his name on the paper, and said, “By the way, young man, what’s your name?” At this the student bent over, pulled up his pants, revealed his legs and said, “You identify me.”

God’s changes are complete. Christians are brand-new people on the inside. The Holy Spirit gives them new life, and they are not the same anymore. We are not reformed, rehabilitated, or reeducated—we are re-created (new creations), living in vital union with Christ (Col. 2:6-7). At conversion we are not merely turning over a new leaf; we are beginning a new life under a new Master.

Paul said that from now on “we regard no one from a worldly point of view” (2 Cor. 5:16). That is, we simply do not judge them by what we see. If we looked at Jesus in this way, we would see only an idealistic Carpenter, murdered by wicked and selfish men. But we look at Jesus 884through the eyes of faith! In the Cross we do not see defeat, but victory! Though we do not see Jesus with our physical eyes, we recognize Him as the living God, our Savior and our Lord

32. How to Be Reconciled to God

Identity: The way we see others.

2 Corinthians 5:16 (NIV)
¹⁶ So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.

2 Corinthians 5:16 (NLT)
¹⁶ So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!

2 Corinthians 5:16 (MSG)
¹⁶ Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore.

Reading a little bit of the Old Testament today at my office (Starbucks) I had a thought.  I wish it was unique to me but I am sure someone smarter than I came up with it.

As I was reading Joshua, thinking about what God did for his people during the Exodus then again what God did for his people with Joshua and Caleb as they crossed the river Jordan.

Is God concerned more about you being prepared (with resources) or you being holy?

I know many people around me who are struggling to make ends meet.  They are trying to plan ahead in their lives on how to provide for their family.  They are rushing to shortcut God by saying, “I don’t have the right education” or “I can never get that job because I don’t have the experience in that area.”

Look, God has shown up in amazing ways throughout history.  He has used people to advance his Kingdom who we would have never chosen.

Get over yourselves!  Focus on removing the sin in your lives.  Turn control of your future over to Jesus and allow him to use you to advance his Kingdom.  Yes, study hard and get good grades, go back to school, but remember as I did reading Joshua today that God cares about clean hearts more than get cares about advanced degrees.

Followers of Jesus Christ are able to have a voice in their community.  I feel there is this big misconception that followers of Jesus are supposed to be quiet and not have a voice on things which plague our communities.  It is ok for you to be a Christian and have an opinion on issues.  And it is even ok if your thoughts don’t align with other Christians or the main stream media.  This does not make you any less of a Christian.  And if you are like me you think better by blurting out your thoughts and allowing others to help steer you.

As a word of caution, as you share you opinion, share it with compassion and grace.  Attacking one another never helps.  There is much happening within my city which needs strong Christ centered voices.  ie Taxation, Law Enforcement, Breaking the Law, Healthcare, and much more.

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouth, but only such as is good for building up as it fits the occasion that it may give grace to those who hear.” Ephesians 4:29