Character—to transfer an image from one thing to another; to press (experience or trial) to bear up under something

God wants to put His power/anointing/weightiness on our lives. Character is the pillars on which anointing rest.—Steven Mansfield

Character—the aggregate of features and traits that form the individual nature of some person or thing; an account of the qualities or peculiarities of a person or thing.

Suffering is redemptive. It is the process by which the imprint of God’s character is made. Once there’s character, there’s hope. Hope is to cling fruitfully to faith.

Jesus learned obedience from what He suffered/was made perfect. Hen 5:8

Suffering–they only way humans can take in the divine image.

God tests our hearts before approval/entrusting. I these 2:4, James 1:13

Authority over the animals

Stewardship over money/material things

We are destined for the praise of His worship. Lord, what is it that you want to received from my worship? What is it that delights the Lord? We are destined for radical passionate worship.—Ephesians 1:12

When God made us, to just give Himself to us, He let us in on how fabulous He is. Our creator is unselfish, He created us to give us gifts – give us Himself, give us His likeness and His ability to love and be holy. An aspect of love is the ability to adore. Worship is the ability or capacity to adore. Since you were created this way–you will worship someone/something. Selfishness robs you of personhood/your identity. The Father, the Son, and the Spirit have never thought of Themselves alone —They have always also thought of the other two–the entire Godhead.

Is God wanting us to worship Him a selfish thing? No. He just wants to share a good thing. There are reasons we are called to give God all our glory:

1. He wants us to experience the highest pleasure in existence.
2. God is the only author of life. We cannot take the credit for anything–as that would be deception. Your survival depends on worship–because He’s tethering you/connecting you every second of your life to your life source.

What glorifies God?  Eph 1:9-11 God’s will is to bring everything to all creative order—all things reconciled with God as boss as it will make everything/all creation make sense. Bring everything under the worship of Christ. This was not God’s response to the fall of man, this was the Father’s intent from the beginning. This was not Plan B. Our universe is a love expression from one of the God-head to another. Whenever whatever I’m doing has God as the head/central–I am caught up in God’s ecstasy—a dance of love.

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. —Genesis 1:27

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image,

1. God’s image is perfect. We are fashioned for a purpose (perfectly suited)
2. He did so as Creator – a creator is an artist

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. —Ephesians 2:10

Jesus is the image of the invisible God. We also were made in God’s image. The deeper I get to know Jesus, the more I find myself.

We are destined to be conformed to His image. There is a power to conform me into what God wants me to be. —Romans 8:29

After I accepted the Lord, from now on He sees me in Christ. When He looks at me, He sees Christ not my sin. He accepts me the same exact way that He accepts Christ.

God’s gift to us has already been paid for—there is nothing we can do to earn it, pay for it, and there is nothing we can’t do good enough to not get it. All we have to do is receive.

He puts in us spiritual gifts at re-birth

1 Corinthians 12:7-11
But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.

Romans 12:3-8
For through the grace given to me I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. And since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let each exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

Ephesians 4:10-12
He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.) And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;

“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.” —Ephesians 2:1

God works through my weaknesses

2 Corinthians 12:9

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

We are destined to die. I live in knowledge of—not the fear of dying. I need to look at my life in the terms of the end. I need to live a more passionate, more filled life. “Carpé diem”—sieze the day. What I do here echoes in eternity. I need to live every day as though it weremy last. Ecclesiastes 7:2

“The Lord your God is with you,
    the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
    in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
    but will rejoice over you with singing.”

Zeph 3:17

You call me beautiful, You find me flawless. SOS 4:7

Resurrection power is in us. (The Holy Spirit power that raised Jesus from the dead.)

He puts streams of living water in us. “Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” —John 7:38

I am righteous “Therefore in Christ, I am the righteousness of God.” —2 Corinthians 5:19-21

God has taken care of the “trial” issue. (God is a righteous God and we stand accused of our sin.) But He has declared us innocent, so the Enemy has no legal basis to accuse you nor do you have to be subject to public opinion.

Being declared righteous gives us a chance to build faith. We are called to believe what God says about us, no matter what we feel.

God places in us a desire to find Him

Jer 29:15; Deaut 4/19 When you seek me, you will find me. When you seek me with all your heart.

Psalms 27:8

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.—Ecclesiastes 3:11

When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,  who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.—Ephesian 1:13b-14