We get a ton of messages from many places telling us who we are, how to act, and what we should do. Too often we let those outside voices shape our true identity and purpose.

In the Book of Romans, Paul writes to the church in Rome to remind them of their purpose - to love, to serve, and to offer forgiveness. He urges followers of Jesus to be "be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer" even in the face of change and conflict. Those are words we need to hear, too.