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Stolen Identity

Blog – 5-3-19 My week didn’t start off so hot. When I returned home from my workout early Monday morning, my phone was filled with texts about possible fraud on my credit card. I immediately called my credit card company and realized that someone had indeed stolen my identity. There were close to $10,000 worth of charges that they thought were suspicious, and they were. Luckily, we got them reversed. I knew immediately what had happened. The day before I placed an order on Amazon for books for a Mastermind group I was going to be leading. Within 10 minutes of placing my order, I received an email from what appeared to be Amazon saying that my credit card needed to be updated. I updated the information on the email, and when I clicked send I had a knot in my gut. Something didn’t feel right. Why didn’t I go to the Amazon site itself and do that? Was this a scam? I quickly put the thought out of my head and went on with my day. When I got off the phone with my credit card company, I immediately called Amazon. Just as I suspected, the email had not come from them. Let me tell you guys, these scammers are good! The email looked exactly like Amazon’s emails, and it came right after I had actually placed the order. It was scary. I had to call the Federal Trade Commission, get my credit frozen, and spent basically four hours sorting everything out. I cried a few tears along the way because I felt so violated. I also felt a wave of fear overtake me as I realized that someone I didn’t even know was pretending to be me. All of the “what if’s” started flooding into my head. As I drove home from my workout on Tuesday, God reminded me of this simple truth – My identity is firmly planted in Jesus Christ! I am a daughter of the King, a child of the Most High. Nothing and no one on earth can ever steal that identity from me. As that truth sunk deep into my soul and filled me with peace, I started thinking about how good these people were at deceiving me. Their email was well disguised. It was hard to tell that they were imposters. And then I started thinking about how many times I have let the enemy steal my identity. Way too often I have believed the negative noise he has placed in my head that tells me I’m not good enough. I have naively listened to the lies whispered in my spirit that say I am defined by the mistakes of my past. I have fallen prey and believed false stories about myself that have been triggered by harsh words spoken by someone close to me. The devil’s only job is to steal, kill and destroy. He does that by committing his form of fraud in our lives – whispers of insecurity, murmurs of shame, undertones of never measuring up. He disguises himself as our own thoughts. Truth is, he’s a thief and a liar, no different than the people who try to hack us on the internet. Just like I had to be proactive to protect my identity in the financial world, we need to be proactive in protecting our spiritual identity. We are not the sum of our mistakes. We are not the shame from our past. We are not the stories of disappointment that play out in our minds. We are a new creation in Christ! We are fearfully and wonderfully made! We are royalty, sons and daughters of the King of Kings! And today I am standing firm on this truth: No one can steal my identity in Christ! I refuse to be afraid because I am a child of God, chosen, forgiven, loved, and filled with grace. Nothing in this world…..NOTHING can ever take that away from me! Hugs and love, Jill

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