Identity Shift -

Hey all,
So this past weekend I was hanging out with some friends in Prescott Park in Portsmouth, NH celebrating my buddy's birthday. I set my bag down to run around a bit and when I got back to it the bag was gone. My Bible, journal, a few other books, MP3 player, and folder with all my paperwork for Ethiopia was in the bag.  Even though it really stinks that I lost my bag, I'm seeing how God it totally using this circumstance to teach me about my identity. Here's what I mean.

I think I identify myself with my positions too much. I'm proud of the fact that I don't have an ipod like everyone else, I have a much cooler, smaller MP3 player that has a built in radio, (that I hardly ever use), video capacity (that I also hardly ever use) and expandable memory slot (that I don't think I've used even once).  Likewise, I love my Bible that has tons of underlined passages, is warn so thin that I had to reinforce it with duck tape, and contains a map of all the prayer walks I've been on because, frankly it makes me look and feel spiritual. But God wants to be more that an accessory to my life that makes me look cool. God wants to be my life. All this to say I'm way too caught up in these trinkets, and if God has to take them away to reorient my priorities, then so be it.

The cool part of the situation is that I just so happen to take some critical paper-work out of my bag and set it on my desk on Thursday, the day before I lost the bag. I also mailed my VISA application on Thursday which if I hadn't done so, then my passport and many other important documents would have been lost. It's still going to be a pain to replace some of the stuff lost with my bag, but I really think God was protecting me from a much worse situating. And more importantly, teaching me to find my identity in Christ and not my stuff.

Thank you so much for your prayers... I think God is totally in the process of preparing me for this trip on so many levels.
Grace and Peace,
Steve~