Hot Mess

What our series "Identity" is all about
We were all created as a “self,” the person God made us to be.  But eventually something comes along that we are ashamed of (our weight, our family, our choices, etc.) and that “shame” covers our “self.”  Then, we create a “personality,” a version of ourselves that we want others to see which covers our “shame.”

But what happens to the person God made us to be?  What’s our identity?

Hot Mess

A lot of us let our past choices, both good and bad, define us.  Even the apostle Paul did that for a while.  But in Galatians 2:19-21, Paul explains that he could never be good enough or bad enough to change God’s love for him.  Letting God’s love define who he was, and not his past, helped him to move on to a brighter future.  The same can be true for our teenagers, as long as they know just how much God loves them.

This Week's Point: Your past may affect you, but it doesn't define you

At Home Suggestions

Remind your teen about a dumb mistake they made when they were little.  This should be something funny.  Odds are, they don’t let this mistake as a child define them as a teen.  Remind them that the mistakes they make now may have a greater effect on them, but they are just as powerless to define them unless they let them.

Read 1 Timothy 1:15 and Philippians 3:5-9

Ask: What are some of the things that Paul used to use to define himself?  Have you ever felt that way?  What does he think about those things now? 

Explain that Paul had a list of good things that he had done, and he also had a pile of wrong things he had done.  He used to believe that those things defined him, but soon he realized that Jesus changed everything.  Through faith, God redefined Paul as His child.  While those choices had consequences, they didn’t define who Paul was anymore, and they couldn’t control his destiny.  

Pray that your family wouldn’t let your past choices, both good and bad, define them.