Class Notes: 9/21/2011

Believers in Spiritual Self Esteem discover who they really are and are content with God's plan for their life

In our study of spiritual self esteem last time we left off with the principle that one's personality identification relates to niche orientation.

The word "niche" is derived from the Latin word meaning nest. It is defined as a place, condition or a status suitable to the capabilities and abilities of a unique individual.

It is not a slot in life, but a nest that is built from many strands of truth. The believer's niche is composed of the strands from the portfolio prepared by God in eternity past.

When the nest is finished it includes spiritual self-esteem, capacity for life, contentment and happiness in any and every circumstance in life.

Niche orientation is not finding your right job nor your right church. It's a combination of finding a series of right things including but not limited to:

Right doctrinal teaching from your right pastor. You must be faithful under your right pastor who communicates doctrine so that you can learn in the privacy of your soul.

Accurate spiritual life and eventually Christian service.

Right academic life as a student or as a teacher.

The right job, position or profession in life. This means that there is a job, position or profession that goes with your personality and provides tranquility in life. Success however is not measured by what you do for a living or how successful you are at it, it is measured by your advance to maturity in the spiritual life because we live in the dispensation of invisible impact.

Right social life. You start out with no social life at all, because what you really are is what you are when alone. Being alone for a while will help you to understand what your needs are and in what areas your capacity is missing. You can then develop these areas and become the right person with capacity for receiving blessing from God.

Correct marital experience starts with becoming the right person with capacity while single. The added pressures and responsibilities of marriage make it difficult to find one's personality and niche orientation after marriage.

It seems that while everyone is seeking their niche, very few seem to actually find it. Finding one's niche requires humility that starts with the one-time decision of faith in Christ, followed by the many decisions related to the advance in the spiritual life that results in the fulfillment of the protocol plan of God.

After salvation we must make daily decisions that are applications of the word of God and be consistent. Inconsistency occurs when because of their emotions and lack of doctrinal viewpoint, the believer's priorities are constantly changing. Eph 4:11-14;

1Tim 2:3-4; distinguishes between the one decision that is made for salvation, and the many decisions that are made thereafter as part of the spiritual life. "For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved, and to come to an epignosis knowledge of the truth (doctrine)."

John also describes this process. 1John 3:23; "And this is His mandate that we believe in the person of His Son, and love one another just as he commanded us".

The integrity love that is commanded is the new commandment that exhibits the mature believer's spiritual life that Jesus gave his disciples in John 13:34-35;

Niche orientation refers back to the portfolio of invisible assets that was provided by God in eternity past because niche orientation is based in the provision and the work of God the Father in eternity past. Eph 1:3;

This means that you realize your personality has significance in God's plan, because knowing all about you as a believer in eternity past, God provided you with a unique portfolio for your success.

Since you are still alive, God still has a plan for you on earth right now and you should not focus on your failures or be disturbed by the difficulties or adversities in your life because God has a plan for your life just the way it is at this moment no matter how adverse or difficult it may be.

Our cognizance of this becomes part of our spiritual self-esteem because it enables us to remain objective in the face of adversity. Success is not defined in terms of prosperity it is defined in terms of our response to whatever God permits to happen as part of his plan.

This is the tranquility that Jesus was referring to in John 14:27;

Niche orientation also looks forward to the protocol plan of God. The very fact that you're alive after some huge failure means you must use God's provision for failure 1John 1:9; and move on to even greater blessing than you ever had before. Phil 3:13-14;

You persist in looking forward in confident anticipation no matter what the circumstances because of your absolute confident expectation in the Lord that comes from the doctrine that establishes your spiritual self-esteem.

Niche orientation functions with the power available in God's power system and means you must be filled with the Spirit and utilizes rebound when necessary. We cannot be niche oriented while we are having an authority problem.

Niche orientation demands daily perception of doctrine as the ultimate authority and the source of the motivation for spiritual self-esteem. A personal sense of destiny from spiritual self-esteem results in knowing the will of God for your life and your unique personality identity.

Niche identification means each strand of the nest you build in your life from the PMA of Bible doctrine will result in a permanent contentment in every category of life.

Happiness is not an overt experience or stimulation, but is a state of mind in the soul that is best described by contentment or tranquility.

Niche identification in social life means picking the right friends; in married life it means the selection of the right mate from spiritual self-esteem.

In business it means being led to choose the right profession. It means recognizing your limitations, and finding something that is compatible with your tranquility that comes from doctrine.

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