2213 Kingdom Girls

So, where are you from? Where do you claim citizenship? Wherever your citizenship is, is where you belong. You may travel other places, but home is always where your citizenship is. Think about how where you are from has made a radical difference in your life. How different you would be if you were from somewhere else. You would talk different. You would have totally different customs. Your view on the world would likely be different. What you know is what you know, and to you it’s what is normal. Some cultures eat with their hands. Other cultures would consider you downright barbaric if you dug into your bowl without a spoon or fork. Some cultures kiss when they meet – for others that’s just weird. In some cultures you take off your shoes before you enter someone’s home – but not everyone was taught that. We’re not being rude, we’re just different. Our culture shapes what feels normal. With that perspective, think about what Paul says in Philippians 3:20, “But we are citizens of heaven.” As a follower of Jesus, you’ve been set apart and your citizenship has changed. You’re not from here. You actually don’t even belong here. Your culture has changed and what used to be normal is no longer normal to you. God has been doing a work in you, changing your identity and reassigning your citizenship. You’re now a member of the Kingdom of Heaven. You know what that means – that means everything is changing for you. You’re undergoing a radical shift. It’s why you just can’t do the things you used to do and feel the way you once did. It’s why you now desire such different things. Sis, you’re not from here! You belong to a different culture. Yesterday I met a woman with a beautiful accent. I knew she was from somewhere very different than me. I asked and she said South Africa. Oh, everything she said just sounded so incredibly fancy to me. I really just wanted to have tea with her. And really, as citizens of HEAVEN, that’s the way it should be with us. We should sound different when we talk to people who don’t yet have their citizenship in Heaven. We should be attractive, intriguing, inviting, irresistible. Girls, we are here representing Heaven – make everyone want to come visit! And once they visit, they will want to stay! The girls from the Kingdom of God do things differently than the rest of the world. Instead of looking out for ourselves, we’re out here loving the heck out of our neighbors. We’re refusing offense, resisting bitterness, and continually choosing forgiveness. We’re stepping down from pedestals, canceling the performance, and learning to embrace humility. Our priorities have shifted from, “What can I get?” to, “What can I give?” Kingdom girls walk in victory through surrender. Now, what a radically uncommon concept that is! In every other kingdom, surrender means defeat. If you wave that white flag, you’re giving up. You’ve lost. But in the Kingdom of God, surrender is not losing—it’s winning. Surrender is the highest act of trust. It’s laying down your need to control, your need to be right, your need to be seen, your need to win, and saying, “Jesus, I trust You more than I trust myself.” Paul tells us in verse 19 about the world culture. “Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth.” Welp, can’t you see how that was you? I was that person – weren’t you too? What I wanted was all I craved. I made my desires my god, my goal, my focus. That’s natural in the world. Every marketing strategy tells you get what you want, and what you want is what they have to sell you. Wake up, Sis – we have to remember we are different! We don’t belong here so we can’t fall into that culture. We belong to Heaven and in the Kingdom of Heaven our King is our God. Paul says when we are in the world’s culture, we brag about shameful things. Do you want to really see that? Ask God to open your eyes to see what that looks like. Then, scroll through your facebook memories and look at your posts from past years. I make my own self wanna gag! The things I used to brag about are shameful. The photos I used to post just hoping someone would see me. I’m embarrassed for myself. It didn’t used to bother me at all, but my citizenship has changed. How about yours? When you finally know where you really belong, there’s a shift because you realize you no longer have to prove your worth. You’re a citizen of Heaven! World culture thinks primarily about this life—what’s happening here, what’s happening now, what we can have, accomplish, experience, and enjoy in this moment. But Kingdom girls remember that this