His name is I AM

I've known the fear. Maybe you have, too.

The one that wakes you up some days and makes you feel like "I'll bet you today will be the day that the bottom just drops out."

Life can mess you up sometimes. It can make you nearsighted.

All the stress, and trials, and hardships that come along… it can be rough and overbearing and cause us to only see the problems in front of us.

And not the perspective beyond us.

"My family is a mess."

"Work takes everything out of me."

"My ex keeps causing problems for me."

"My kids don’t listen."

"My parents are burdening me with all their problems."

"I can't get out of reach of everyone else and all of their desires for my life."

You ever have a run like that? I know I have. Same fears, different dialogue.

Sometimes all we can see in this life is our own problems.

But think of this.

On those days when all you can perceive is the chaos - when life seems too much to take - what if there is more? What if there is a perspective beyond what you can see?

Our God is a great and powerful God who knows what you’re going through, is able to meet that need, and is right there with you.

His name is "I AM."

Just look at the vastness of His creation. When your problems get too big to take, just consider how intricate and intelligent everything is.

• How certain bugs exist to eat other bugs which exist to eat certain things that keep us healthy.
  
  
• Or how our bodies are able to take what we eat and turn the good parts into human tissue and get rid of the bad parts.
  
  
• Or how life can appear when science says it can't, doctors say there is no hope, and hope says all is lost.
  
  
• Or how the position of the earth and moon and sun are so precise that even the slightest percentage of difference would cause crazy ripples, and yet somehow they are held together.
  
  
• And right now – as you consider all of this and decide if you want to receive it or debate it – you have a complex brain that is working in ways you can't even fathom... where did that brain come from? Who created it so unique and complex?

His name is "I AM."

He knows every star and every planet and every constellation… and He knows you by name.
Can you imagine? In comparison to the size of this universe we know of, we are less than insignificant... we are seen and known and understood and loved.

Loved by Him.

His name is "I AM."

We are not even as bright as the sun or as large as a galaxy, and yet the Great God of the universe knows us… cares for us… loves us.

Do you get that?

So why do we doubt? Why do we fear? Why don’t we trust that God can provide for us as He always has for His people?

A man named Louie Giglio once put it this way - "I am not, but I know I AM." That's a great line... because when we are feeling like we're "not," we know the One who is.

Moses said to God, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?"

God said to Moses, "I am who I am . This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.' " (Exodus 3:13-14)

A poet named Helen Mallicoat described it in her own words this way:

I was regretting the past
and fearing the future.

Suddenly, my Lord
was speaking.
He paused.
I waited.
He continued:

"When you
live in the past,
with its mistakes and regrets,
it is hard.
I am
not there.
My name is not - I WAS.

When you live in the future,
with its problems and fears,
it is hard.
I am not there.
My name
is not - I WILL BE.

When you live in this moment,
It is not hard.
I am here.
My name is I AM."

Whatever happens, He's got our back... and our front... because He has our "now."

It may not feel that way. You may be angry with God. Again, I know this one, too. Same anger, different dialogue.

I've learned, though, that it is possible to use the struggles in life to look for God in ways that the joys distract us from. I've also found that when you do, the joys take on a much deeper meaning.

Jesus is our Savior, and He continued this“I AM” dialogye when He made declarative statements about His identity. Which of these do you most need to claim right now?

• "I am the bread of life." (Do you feel hungry for a satisfying life?)
  


• "I am the light of the world." (Do you feel like you're in the dark?)
  


• "I am the door for the sheep." (Do you wonder which way you should go?)
  


• "I am the good shepherd." (Do you wonder who will guide you?)
  


• "I am the resurrection and the life." (Do you need a touch of the supernatural to bring your deadness into a fully-alive existence?)
  


• "I am the way, the truth, and the life." (Do you tire of opinions ruling the world in lieu of something greater?)
  


• "I am the true vine." (Do you yearn for a constant supply of healthy nourishment that will cause you to actually bear fruit?)

Wondering where to find all of this?

His name is I AM.