Ralph Harris - Gods Astounding Opinion of You: Understanding Your Identity Will Change Your Life

Gods

Astounding

Opinion

of You

RALPH HARRIS

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS

EUGENE, OREGON

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.

Verses marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible , 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Verses marked MSG are taken from The Message. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Verses marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Cover by Koechel Peterson & Associates, Inc. Minneapolis, Minnesota

Cover photo iStockphoto / Thinkstock

Backcover photo by Peter Kingsley

All emphasis and bracketed inserts in Scripture quotations are added by the author.

GODS ASTOUNDING OPINION OF YOU
Copyright 2007 by Ralph Harris
Published 2011 by Harvest House Publishers
Eugene, Oregon 97402
www.harvesthousepublishers.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Harris, Ralph, 1956-

[Better off than you think]

Gods astounding opinion of you / Ralph Harris.

p. cm.

Originally published: Better off than you think. Evangel Pub. House, 2007

ISBN 978-0-7369-3783-2 (pbk.)

1. God (Christianity)Love. 2. Christian life. 3. Spirituality. I. Title.

BT140.H35 2011

231'.6dc22

2010021574

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 / BP-SK / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

My deepest love and thanks to my delightful and blameless wife, Sarah, and my dear and brilliant daughters, Ellen and Emma. Without your encouragement, inspiration, and patience, my life and this book would have all the seasoning of cottage cheese.

Contents

R alph Harris is an affirmer. Ive noticed that in his interactions with other people. He almost always finds a way to let them know that theyre valuable. Because he acts that way, he reminds me a lot of his heavenly Father. He sees the best in people and seems to call out those qualities within them to a greater degree by the words he says to and about them. I think its Christ in Ralph who is doing that.

The book you hold in your hand is an expression of this gifting and ministry the Father has entrusted to Ralph. The first time I read this book, I felt a power in it. Not the heady kind of experience that can happen when somebody strokes your ego by flattery, but a sense of empowerment. Ralph was telling me authentic truths about my identity that I already knew deep within myself, but I found benefit in having them reinforced.

Gods Astounding Opinion of You isnt one of those books thats supposed to get you hyped up over believing in yourself. To the contrary, this book will cause you to become genuinely enthused about the One who created you. It will cause you to sense love for Him rising up in you in response to the lavishing love He has for you. Youre going to feel that love as you read this book. Youre going to believe what Ralph tells you about your Fathers opinion because he backs it up with Scripture and the Holy Spirit is going to assure you that its true.

I believe anybody who reads this book will be a better person for having read it. Its not simply a better self-image that we all need, but a biblical self-image. Thats the value of this book. It sets forth biblical truth about who you are as the beloved child of God and motivates you to believe it despite messages to the contrary that you may have received during your lifetime.

When you discover the reality of Gods Astounding Opinion of You, youre going to find yourself being transformed. Love is the greatest power for transformation that exists, and the greatest love that exists is the agape of God. As simple as it seems, our determined attempts to improve ourselves or even our sincere prayers for God to help us change do not facilitate transformation. What revolutionizes lives is the love of the Father at work in us through His Son and by the power of His Spirit. Thats what will happen to you as you read.

Some books are enjoyable but forgettable. Others are memorable and inspirational. Now and then youll come across one that is transformational. This book fits in the last category. Open your heart and mind as you read it. Ask the Holy Spirit to take away any barriers that could prevent you from believing that you are as wonderfully lovable as this book will suggest you are. Then read it with a hungry heart and I guarantee you wont be disappointed.

Steve McVey
Author, Grace Walk

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

MATTHEW 11:28-30

Y oure in for the greatest of delights if you are familiar with the above passage but not so familiar with the experience.

The single purpose of this book is that you find Jesus and life in ChristChristianitydeeply satisfying, beyond anything youve ever known. Many of us, long haunted by the above passage, know Jesus said it, but our desire to know it in experience has been relatively frustrated.

I believe the current work of God is centered upon the theme found above, with the immediate benefit being a happy bunch of God-enamored Christiansits what God is doing today. While works for God are important, the work of God in His people should thrill us so much that we become crazy about and gladly dependent on Him. And thats what life is like when you find Him in you as well as around you. The great joy you find will certainly produce sincere works for God, but thats not Gods first goalits the result. Works for God are a by-product of grace-filled believers who cannot contain the wonderful, deep urgings and desires of the Spirit living within. This is the inheritance of those purchased by Jesus Christ, and He is determined you should have it.

It begins with knowing what God thinks of you. At a seemingly record pace, God is making new and fantastic sons and daughters, tremendous children of His glory through the new birth in Christ. How thrilling is the churchand how thrilling are you! One moment were in serious trouble with God, and the next were spot-on perfect, indwelt by God Himself, residents of heaven already, the people of Gods delight. What a change! Yet most days, that change makes little difference to us. Weve lost (or have never known) the wonder of the miracle that began with Jesus, the firstborn among many brothers (Romans 8:29).

Why? Because weve been deluded into making a lunatic argument with God. The argument is not so much about who He is and what He is capable of doing. Its about who we are and our role in His plan. While He thinks were one thingholy, righteous, blameless, and majestic sons and daughters walking the planetwe think were something elsesomething way less. Gods opinion of us and our opinion of ourselves dont agree. Based on what He did for us through the death and resurrection of Christ centuries ago, He has been making fabulous new creations, actual brothers and sisters of Jesus, for centuries since. But what do we think?