Hey there, hello to you today.

Thanks for listening to this episode of The Burt (Not Ernie) Show.

Today’s subject matter is of the utmost importance, but not necessarily something that is talked about enough within the Christian community.

And that’s our tendency to live like orphans even though we are now part of God’s family thanks to Jesus.

God's promises devotional on Amazon

Good verses to read about your true identity:

Psalm 17:8

Isaiah 43:4

Psalm 147:3

Psalm 18, verses 2, 18 & 19, 28, 32, 35 & 36

Romans 12

John 8

We have so many promises from the Lord to assure and reassure us of our new identity in Christ, and yet we struggle with feeling unseen, abandoned, alone, wondering about unanswered prayers and the things in life, big and small, that wear on us and weigh us down.

How do we reconcile the way we feel with the promises God has given us?

That’s the heart of this episode of the podcast.

You’re listening to The Burt (Not Ernie) Show podcast, which can be found on the EDIFI app, an all Christian content podcast option - as well as anywhere else you listen to podcasts. This is episode number 204.

If I could give a definition of a believer living more like an orphan than like a child of the Most High God, I would put it like this: there is a strong and sometimes even extreme sense of aloneness and possibly abandonment that can at times define some aspects of a person’s character, their attitudes, thoughts, feeling, beliefs and intentions.

This sense of aloneness and possibly feeling abandoned almost seems to operate on its own, like it has its own life force or something, working to mold the person’s self-image, actions and reactions. Sometimes it may seem like the words someone speaks are misheard and interpreted very differently than what was being conveyed (which can lead to strong reactions).

Decisions may be made based on feeling orphaned. This can also lead to rapid decisions and reactions, as in too quick and not thought out or prayed over. Ready, fire, aim sort of a thing.

We have a God who loves us and because of that love for us and because of our love for Jesus, we have an enemy, Satan. And I think our enemy works to get us feeling alone, abandoned, orphaned. The devil is in the details, isn’t that the saying? And the devil also works in darkness and tries to push God’s children into darkness as well. Operating in the darkness and pushing that orphan-like feeling on people is an attempt to manipulate people. And to keep the evil influence secret. Satan doesn’t want us to know that he is harassing us; he would like us to wrongly believe that the problem lies within us. The father of lies, the devil, always lies to us because it is his native tongue (that’s what Jesus said in John 8:44).

Some of the things our enemy often does is try to hide what’s actually going on from the Lord’s followers. He lies, he deceives, he manipulates. Now what if a person starts to counter the sense of aloneness with the truth from God’s word? Does the devil ever try to push back on the truth? Yeah, he probably does.

So what are we to do?

One thing I know for sure; Jesus died to give us freedom, and when we bump up against areas in our life where our freedom has been stolen or where we maybe have given our freedom away, we don’t want to just give up. Pray and keep on praying, isn’t that what Jesus taught His followers in Luke chapter 18? It can be so hard to keep on fighting the good fight of our faith in prayer sometimes. But I really want to encourage you to keep fighting. Keep praying. Keep your Bible open. Keep believing, even if it feels like it’s hard to believe those promises. Pray and don’t give up. Paul wrote about this in 1 Thessalonians - pray without ceasing. God won’t lie to you, leave you or forsake you. And you are not an orphan.

When we read Galatians chapter five, we get this beautiful picture of freedom. Not just freedom like we celebrate on the Fourth of July here in America. But freedom in Christ, next level freedom, freedom that impacts our life here and now but carries over into all eternity. It’s not a temporary freedom, there is no way that it can be taken from us (in spite of the fact that at times we may not feel free, our freedom in Jesus isn’t something that ebbs and flows, that comes and goes - it is permanent and eternal and everlasting, while our feelings don’t alway speak the truth).

From the J. B. Phillips translation, Galatians 5 verse 1 says this: Plant your feet firmly therefore within the freedom that Christ has won for us, and do not let yourselves be caught again in the shackles of slavery.

As I read that verse once more, imagine yourself being freed from literal shackles of slavery and then think about letting yourself be re-shackled and enslaved.

That is what we are told not to do. Plant your feet firmly with the freedom Christ won for you. Stay planted, rooted in Him. And don’t move out of that place of being planted, don’t move to a place where Satan has the chance to put those shackles back on your ankles. Keep your feet in the right place and don’t let him get your feet moving off that place, the Rock which is Christ Jesus.

Freedom is what Jesus gave to you. He bought it for you. It’s yours. That’s an absolute iron-clad promise. Don’t forget it!

If you ever feel like you’re being pushed and pulled and prodded in a super stressful way, like you’re just being driven and driven and driven, that could be the enemy harassing you. Why do I think that? Because that driven driven driven feeling is in direct opposition to the Galatians 5:1 freedom that Jesus secured for us. And the Lord sure isn’t giving us the exact opposite of what He died to grant us. When you feel like you’re being driven, pause and pray, pray that the promised freedom God clearly talks about in Galatians would be your immediate reality and that the liar the devil would be rendered ineffective in his harassment.

Satan loves to drive people. Jesus never drives people.

Satan wants everybody to live like they’ve been orphaned, but he doesn’t want anyone to talk about it. But when we talk to the Lord about it, we bring it into the light and God’s truth lands on it and that is really effective at keeping us free. Because the truth, said Jesus, will set you free. John 8:31-32.

Genesis 18:14 says this: Is anything too hard for the LORD?

The Lord said these words to Abraham when Sarah laughed when He promised that she would have a son in about a year’s time.

It’s one thing to hear me pose the question, “Is anything too hard for God?”

But it’s quite another when the Lord speaks for Himself and asks, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” in direct response to one of His dearly loved children wondering whether or not He will keep His promise.

Is God maybe asking you today, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?”

How can you apply this verse to your situation? What’s your answer to His question?

We have some weapons in our spiritual arsenal.

Weapons like prayer, like fasting, like choosing belief and refusing doubt, the weapon of worship, and of course the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17).

Luke 24:13-35 tells us that Jesus walks with us and comforts us when we are traveling on a difficult path in this life. That indicates that He never wants us to feel abandoned or orphaned on those hard roads. He wants us to know that He is walking alongside us.

In John 16:24, Jesus described the Holy Spirit as our Helper, Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor, Counselor, Strengthener and Standby (Amplified).

This verse reminds us to ask and keep on asking in order that we might receive and have our joy be complete. Pray things through to their very final end. Please don’t give up on praying! Never stop praying! And keep believing every single promise God gives you in the Bible.

He loves you with great tenderness and he wants you to have a rich, full, joyous life as His child. Secure, at peace, resting in His love and care. Not a trouble free life - that’s not possible in this world, and Jesus Himself said that in this world we will have trouble, but to take heart, for He has overcome the world (John 16:33).

1 Peter 1:4 says that we have been born into an inheritance that is beyond the reach of change. Orphans don’t have an inheritance and they live in constant fear of change. Satan is so lying when he tells us differently than this verse promises!

And 1 Peter 2:9-10 is proof of our non-orphaned status. 9 But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests,[g] a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

“Once you had no identity as a people;
now you are God’s people.
Once you received no mercy;
now you have received God’s mercy.”[h]

We are chosen, consecrated, set apart, a special people for God’s own possession, called out of darkness and into His marvelous light. Once we were not a people, but that time in our lives is over and done with.

I’m going to list off a few more verses you are welcome to read for yourself if you’d like. The truths in the...