Unfortunately, Christians at large are suffering from an identity crisis and most don't even know it. This is obvious from the amount of emotional pain and suffering that abounds in the church. The kind of pain I am talking about is the pain of feeling like, "I don't belong", the guilt that accompanies thoughts of "I'm not good enough", and the anxiety that comes from fear of not measuring up to some self-imposed standards. As a result, relationship problems, depression, and anxiety are common experiences for Christians.

Much of the problem can be traced to the common practice of people accepting Christ as their Savior and Lord, then doing as James says, "they look at their face in the mirror and after walking away they immediately forget what they look like" (Paraphrase James 1:23b-24). In the same way, we make a statement of faith and become a child of the King, but we continue to wear the same old, worn out identity that we had before we met Christ.

Robert McGee, author of The Search for Significance says, "If you don't know who you are (in Christ), you will never mature in Christ." Maturity is developing the mind of Christ. Maturity is learning to think from God's perspective not the world's. Maturity is thinking about yourself, others, and your circumstances the way God does. Maturity in Christ brings about a harvest of peace, joy, and righteousness and makes us more effective instruments through which God accomplishes His work. The process of discovering and accepting our true identity in Christ is fundamental to our Christian maturity and our sense of personal peace and well being.

This edition of ChristianDiscipleship.com is devoted to helping us all to better grasp the transforming love of God and our identities as Children of the Most High God. For until we grasp the truth of who we are in Christ, we will live enslaved to Satan and his lies, to the opinions of others, to the lusts of the flesh, and to our fears and anxieties. We pray that through this edition of ChristianDiscipleship.com many will come to greater freedom in Christ, growing up into Him who is our Head and increasing in effectiveness for the sake of the Kingdom of our God and of His Christ.

The inspiration for the devotionals and Bible studies for this edition comes from Sinclair Ferguson's small, but powerful book Children of the Living God. It is with great prayer and anticipation that we present this newest edition of CD.com to our readers. Thank you for your faithfulness to keep checking back with us. If you want to be notified when our next edition will be coming out please email us at Editor. May God richly bless your New Year with a greater vision of His unsurpassed love for you.