As we build our lives on Christ, we possess spiritual walls of protection that keep us from succumbing to the attacks of the enemy on our lives.

- Del Wells, Get Building

‘Self-examination feels difficult because we are tempted to look at ourselves outside of Christ. As Martin Luther declared, ‘If Christ is put aside and I look only at myself, then I am done for.’ This is the experience many of us have. Self-examination feels like the opposite of the freedom we are supposed to know in Christ. Christian self-examination, however, is not something we are called to outside of Christ. What makes self-examination possible is the objective truth that, as Christians, we are in him.

Our goal in self-examination is to see the depths of our depravity, sin, and misordered desire, not in themselves but in light of Christ. We needn’t fear what we find in ourselves, however much we might struggle with this, because there is no condemnation for us in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1).

- When Prayer Becomes Real

1. A new creation in Christ
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!” (2 Cor. 5:17)
2. A child of God
“But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name” (John 1:12).
3. A branch of the true vine
“I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me” (John 15:5).
4. A friend of Jesus
“I do not call you servants anymore, because a servant doesn’t know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from my Father” (John 15:15).
5. Justified and redeemed
“They are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:24).
6. An heir
“We are God’s children, and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him” (Rom. 8:17).
7. A sanctified saint
“To the church of God at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called as saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord—both their Lord and ours” (1 Cor. 1:2).
8. A temple of the Holy Spirit
“Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own” (1 Cor. 6:19)
9. A member of Christ’s body
“Now you are the body of Christ, and individual members of it” (1 Cor. 12:27).
10. An ambassador for Christ
“Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf: ‘Be reconciled to God’” (2 Cor. 5:20)
11. The righteousness of God
“He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21)
12. Chosen
“For he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in love before him” (Eph. 1:4)
13. Adopted
“He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ for himself, according to the good pleasure of his will” (Eph. 1:5)
14. Redeemed and forgiven
“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace” (Eph. 1:7).
15. Sealed with the Holy Spirit
“In him you also were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and when you believed” (Eph. 1:13).
16. Made alive in Christ
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! (Eph. 2:4-5)
17. Raised and seated with Him in the heavenly places
“He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6).
18. God’s workmanship
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do” (Eph. 2:10)
19. A citizen of heaven
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil. 3:20).
20. No longer a slave, but free
“For freedom, Christ set us free. Stand firm then and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery” (Gal. 5:1).

If you are unsure of God’s vision, learn what God’s priorities are and how they relate to your values, talents, and experiences. God knows all about you and how you fit into his kingdom agenda. God loves every person and wants them to become part of his spiritual family by faith in Christ. God is in the transformation business of rescuing people from brokenness caused by sin. You can play a part in the Lord’s mission by introducing unbelievers to Jesus and helping them to put their trust in him. You have abilities, relationships, vocation, home, time, and resources God can use for his purposes. Ask him what he has in mind.’
- Del Wells, Get Building