Happy Valentine’s Day Partner and Friends! (Well, almost)

This time of the year we hear a lot about love. The world has its own interpretation of what love is. It sees love on such a very different level than how God actually sees love.  The world portrays love as a “something given, something earned” concept. If you love me, then I love you. If you give to me, then I give to you. But in God’s eyes, the God kind of love, love is given freely without any “strings attached” to it.  God’s love, when discussed in the bible is called the Agape love. Agape love is the highest level of love. It is the kind of love that gives and gives and gives and does not expect anything in return. It is unconditional love. It’s the highest and purest form of love that exists. You see the working of this love when God sent Jesus to die for us.  “For God so loved the World, that He gave His only begotten son.” (John 3:16)

Every day of our lives, God extends this hand of love to us. He extends this love to everyone. Not just those who are saved but to those who are not saved. Look at the above scripture, “God so loved the world…” That encompasses every living, breathing person on this earth. He loves and extends that love to them every day. Some accept that love, receive Him as their God, and receive Jesus as their savior; but others do not. Even upon being rejected, God still keeps extending love. God will always continue to extend His love because God is love; and in His great agape love, He loves His saved family and He loves those who are not yet saved. 

We, as His family, are asked to act like our Heavenly Father. How does our Heavenly Father act? He extends love, and not just any form of love, but agape love - unconditional love that gives without asking for anything in return. So, as children of God we are asked to extend love to those around us. We extend love to our family and our church family, but then, also like God, we extend love to the world around us. We extend love to those who don’t look, act, or think like us. We love unconditionally, always extending a hand of love to the lost and hurting world around us.  

I truly believe, champion partners and friends, if we would extend a hand of love to the world around us, we would see the change that God is looking for. We will first see the change in our lives; then that change will affect those around us. So, determine today that you will extend love to those around you and be the hand of God that loves.

-Coach Brim

I remember a time as a teenager that I was being disciplined by my mom for something that I had done, more specifically, something I said. I remember the words she spoke to me in that moment as I was standing face to face with her. I was defending myself for my actions and thinking in my mind that I had every right to be this way. I remember telling her that I was not a child but almost 18…blah, blah, blah. In that instance, my mom, being the brilliant, caring, loving person she is, turned the very words I was using on me. To all my ranting, raving, and talking about how grown up I was, she responded to me with four profound words: “Then act like it.” She said those four words and walked off. I was left speechless.  

To this day, that is a phrase I often tell myself when a situation rises in my life. Since then I have added my own version of my mom’s famous words to me. I will tell myself in whatever may come my way, “then act like the word of God is true.” We are told in John 17:17, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” In other words, every word written in the word of God is true; but we have a part to play. We must receive by faith and believe it as truth. Remember, in James 1:22 we are told to be a doer of the word and not hearers only. Joining these two scriptures together we see that we must believe the word of God is true and act on it (be a doer)! I can still hear my mother’s voice telling me, “Then act like it.” If the word says it’s true and you believe it is true, then act like it is true.  

Champions, it’s time that we act like the word of God is true! It is time for us to rise up and speak forth those things that belong to us out of the word of God over the situations that come our way. Act out what we believe. Act like the word of God is true!

-Coach Brim

Today I want to share a scripture out of the book of Acts that I have been confessing for the last week. The scripture is found in Acts 17:28, and it states, “For IN HIM we live, and move, and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, for we are also His offspring.” I also like the way The Passion Translation says it: “It is through Him that we live and function and have our identity; just as your own poets have said, ‘Our lineage comes from him.’”

See, once we accepted Jesus as our savior, our life became in Him! In Him we are promised a lot of wonderful blessings, and all these blessings truly make us Champions 4 Christ. The above scripture is just a small portion of what belongs to us, but in that small portion, God is making a big statement. In Him we LIVE, in Him we MOVE, and in Him WE HAVE OUR BEING. That sounds great! But, what does that truly mean? Below I have listed the definitions of what it means to live, move, and have our identity in Christ:

The definition of live according to the original Greek is:

to have true life and worthy of the name; active, blessed, endless in the kingdom of God; enjoy real life; living water, having vital power in itself and exerting the same upon the soul; to be full of vigor; to be fresh, strong and efficient; active and powerful. 

All of this belongs to us In Christ Jesus! Praise God! It’s more than just the air we breathe. In Him I live. I live a life worthy of the name - active, blessed, and endless in the Kingdom of God.  In Him I live vital power upon my soul and I am strong, active, and powerful! In Him I live a life of fullness - peace, joy, health, and prosperity. In Him I live.

The definition of move according to the original Greek is:

to stir up, to cause to go, to set in motion. 

So, In Christ and my life in Him, I am stirred up, I am on the go, and everything of God is set in motion. Nothing is impossible to me because I believe that I am in Him, and in Him I move. 

The definition of have my being/identity is: 

the condition or character as to who a person or what a thing is; the qualities, beliefs, etc. that distinguish or identify a person. 

In Christ, I take on His character, His qualities, His beliefs. I know who I am in Him! My identity is set, not because of what I have done, but because of what He has done! Praise God. I reaped the reward for the purchased blessings that are in Christ - the blessing He secured for us. In Him I have my identity. 

In Him, I live, I move, and I have my identity. I am a child of God and all things are “wrapped up” for me in Him. I can choose to live out of His sufficiency, move out of His ability, and find myself in His identity. So, this week, choose to live a life in Him, living, moving and having His identity.

-Coach Brim