“I AM” is the Only One We Need
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Exodus 3:13,14 KJV
And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
Isaiah 45:5-7 NIV
I am the LORD, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting men may know there is none besides me. I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the LORD, do all these things.
Listened to a song this morning while driving my husband to work. The chorus states, “Everybody’s worshipping something. I choose You.” The song relates how many idols there are in our lives and how we put them too often before we put God. Moses was well-respected in his own “sphere of influence.” His concern, though, was that those who did not know him would probably not follow him on his word alone. He knew he would need some higher authority to give his words power and credibility. A God bigger and more powerful that all the other gods. God knew that too. The burning bush for Moses was the first time since Eden’s fall that God sought out an intimate and personal relationship with man.
Moses wasn’t exactly thrilled with that dubious honor, though. And I don’t blame him! Who? I AM. The I AM? Yes, THE I AM. Oh. Okay. Well I think you must have made a small error. You see, God, I stutter. And I’m getting on in years. And I’ve made a life for myself here. It’s a pretty good life, too and I don’t think my wife and her family will be very happy with me when I tell them all this. I’m not sure even they’ll believe me, let alone the Israelites!
God was patient with Moses. And with the Israelites. He guided Moses every step of the way – providing him exactly what he needed to become the leader he grew into. And through Moses, He made the same provisions for the Israelites. And He provides for us too. Don’t you think the God who formed the light and created darkness can handle our little lives without much trouble? Well . . . sure. But . . . Well . . . OK. He does handle it, just not the way I think it should go sometimes. And God responds that is because we are not in charge!
I struggle so often with trying to take control of my life and my world. And, thankfully, God remains patient with me. Even after all these centuries He remains patient with us. He assures us, “I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me”. I don’t know about you, but I need a God who is in charge—even when I pretend He’s not. And I am so grateful He lets me think it’s all my idea to give Him back control
My prayer today is that you lift a word of praise to the great I AM. And that you remember who made you and loves you and cares for you all the days of your life.
Mary
